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The pharmaceutical company Mylan has recently become the target of heavy criticism after allowing the price of the EpiPen to surge from $56.64 in 2007 to over $365 today, an increase of nearly 500%.
EpiPens administer epinephrine which can be used in emergencies to reverse the constricted breathing, hives, and other life-threatening symptoms resulting from severe allergic reactions. Approximately 3.6 million Americans were prescribed the life-saving allergy medication in 2015 alone.
Mylan CEO Heather Bresch, who has come under fire in recent weeks, defended the pricing of EpiPens in her testimony before the United States House of Representatives, stating that “recent Epipen price increases have not yielded the revenue to Mylan that many assume,” as recorded by The Washington Times.
She continued, “I think many people incorrectly assume we make $600 off each pen. This is simply not true,” as noted in The Washington Post’sarticle, “Lawmakers grill Mylan CEO over EpiPen price hikes.”
The drug-making company also justified the price hike by stating that it invested over $1 billion dollars in product development. Meanwhile, experts argue that designing and manufacturing the upgraded EpiPen would not have cost nearly as much.
Additionally, politicians such as Hillary Clinton and Bernie Sanders have denounced the drug company for its actions. “There’s no reason an EpiPen, which costs Mylan just a few dollars to make, should cost families more than $600,” Senator Sanders tweeted.
Price gouging is certainly not unheard of in the pharmaceutical industry. In fact, the EpiPen outrage is reminiscent of a similar incident last year when Martin Shkreli, CEO of Turing Pharmaceuticals, increased the price of the HIV drug Daraprim by more than 5000%. This scam elicited a similar response, with Shkreli ultimately resigning from his position as CEO after being charged with accusations of security fraud unrelated to Turing Pharmaceuticals
Shkreli weighed in on the controversial EpiPen price increase in a phone interview with NBC News, even he denounced the move, stating, “These guys are really vultures. What drives this company’s moral compass?”
Works Cited
Egan, Matt. “How EpiPen Came to Symbolize Corporate Greed.”CNNMoney. Cable News Network, n.d. Web. 04 Oct. 2016.
Howell, Tom. “Mylan CEO called before Congress, defends price hikes for lifesaving EpiPens.” The Washington Times. The Washington Times, LLC, 21 Sept. 2016. Web. 13 Oct. 2016.
Johnson, Carolyn. ““Lawmakers grill Mylan CEO over EpiPen price hikes.”The Washington Post. The WP Company LLC, 22 Sept. 2016. Web. 13 Oct. 2016.
Popken, Ben. “Martin Shkreli Weighs in on EpiPen Scandal, Calls Drug Makers ‘Vultures’.” NBC News. NBCNews.com, 19 Aug. 2016. Web. 13 Oct. 2016.