Sen. Lisa Murkowski, R-Alaska, has asked the Senate Judiciary Committee to hold a formal hearing into how and why the pharmaceutical company Myland EpiPens justifies EpiPen price increases.
“In Alaska, everything costs more than in the Lower 48, health care especially, and the remote nature of many of our communities exacerbates this problem,” Murkowski said on Aug, 30 in a letter to Sen. Chuck Grassley, R-IA, chairman, and ranking member Patrick Leahy, D-VT, of the Senate Judiciary Committee.
EpiPens auto-injectors are used to treat severe allergic reactions to insect bites, food, drug and other allergens, as well as to treat exercise-induced anaphylaxis.
Epinephrine is the only medication known to stop anaphylaxis, which can cause shock, a sudden drop in blood pressure, trouble breathing and even death.
Myland’s defense of the sticker price of over $600 for a pack of two EpiPen’s –Myland’s best selling product- has drawn fire nationwide from the public. Since 2007, the price for that life saving medication has risen by over 500 percent.
Analysts have estimated that EpiPens contain approximately one dollar’s worth of epinephrine, while the product generates over $1 billion in sales annually, accounting for about 40 percent of Mylan’s profits, a profit margin estimated at 55 percent, she told Grassley and Leahy.
While Myland announced that it will begin selling a generic version of the EpiPen with a list price of $300, the price is still very high for $1 worth of medication, and only comes in the face of significant public backlash and after years of steady, significant price increases, she said.
“Alaskans want to hear directly from the company, under oath, exactly how a 400 percent or more price increase for an off-patent medication is justifiable,” she said.
Murkowski noted that Alaskans already face higher prices for energy, food, housing and other necessities and that life-saving medication should not be added to the list.
“In our rural communities, where there is often no doctor or emergency medical services available, people need to be able to afford this medication,” she said.
“Over 80 percent of Alaskan communities are not on a road system, and the weather often prevents flying to a medical facility. Alaskans must have affordable, reliable access to a life-saving product. When they cannot afford it, or have put off buying a new EpiPen after their old one has expired due to price increases, death is a very real possibility. This is unacceptable.”
