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Under Pressure, Mylan Will Release Generic EpiPen
Mylan, the EpiPen maker announced that it will begin selling a new generic version of the EpiPen for half the current price. The move comes in response to mounting pressure from consumers after the drug company raised its prices 400 percent over the past decade.
Carolyn Johnson Health Business Reporter for The Washington Post discussed the reason behind the recent price hike. "When a company has a virtual monopoly," Johnson explained, "they have a free runway to raise the price." There are other non-EpiPen brands out there, like Adrenaclick, but EpiPen has become a trusted brand with a lock on the market. "It's like Kleenex, if Kleenex saved your life," said Johnson.
Mylan CEO Heather Bresch has shifted blame for the increased cost of the product away from Mylan and onto insurance companies with high deductibles. "The tough and complicated thing about drug prices is that there a lot of blame to go around," said Johnson. "It might be true that when the company raises its price not all of that money is going to the drug company, but at the same time they also take a slice of it."