The cost of EpiPen continues to rise

Don't feel too bad... they just DOUBLED the cost of my dog's seizure medication.

It's up to our leaders to look into price gouging in the medical industry. Sadly, this is something that powerful people don't seem to be talking about.

a reply to: TheAmazingYeti

Goodrx.com has the pen for $635 from sams club, this is for 2 units.

a reply to: DeReK DaRkLy

Of course there is more to the story than we know. Me sitting on the outside I see it this way:

We are in a global market now, shouldn't regulations dictate an global average cost for multi-national corporations who manufacture life saving drugs?

It seems to me that these companies are are begging to be HEAVILY regulated like electric/natural gas providers are.

a reply to: TheAmazingYeti

yep my two pen set is now $600. Three years go it was $150. I can't buy a replacement but will hang n to my expired one that expired yesterday.

a reply to: marg6043Where can you get the old styled injection sets?

How come Bernie didn't get picked for the presidential candidate, he isn't blind.

The only place medicine should be really expensive is in hell. Must have been an escape of demons recently.

originally posted by: ChesterJohn
a reply to: TheAmazingYeti

yep my two pen set is now $600. Three years go it was $150. I can't buy a replacement but will hang n to my expired one that expired yesterday.

originally posted by: wissy
Expiration date is the worst part of this drug, my son is allergic to peanuts, i have to buy two every 12 months one for home and one for school, if I dont do this I risk a visit from child services! hasent happened because i always make certain i comply, but i do feel like i am being ripped off and forced to spend money i dont have, money that could be spent of food, mortgate, power bill, ect ect.

anyways my son is now old enough to simply carry the pen with him so ill only buy one from now on. I cant imagine how parents with several kids could afford this scam.

originally posted by: mysterioustranger
a reply to: TheAmazingYeti

I carry 2-adult and child dosages in my emergency bag daily. For me? I'm supposed to ask(every time) if that patient HAS their own 1st before using mine...as to offset the cost of replacement.Though they are provided by the Fire Dept, I hope I never have to use them...but I can and they will be immediately replaced.

I carry this bag with me home, on vacation...everywhere...especially with more and more people with peanut-type allergies these days...And the issue with financial burden is real for the average person or family.

The big issue with this is the expiration dates....If I dont use them by the exp. date...they get thrown away. And its pretty hard to ask someone having a reaction and cant talk or breathe...if they have their own 1st....just to not have to use mine.

And the expiration dates are a financial big deal for everyone..

MS
EMT/ERT
Advance Life Support

after the expiration date the effectiveness of the pen declines, you can use them but wouldnt count on them as they may have no effect, if you do well to keep them out of light and refrigerated they should last longer then their posted date. you can tell visibly if the quality has declined as the fluid will start to acquire color, brown red pink, basically anything not clear is bad,

personally i would hold onto them until they start to get a color, then toss them,

www.medscape.com/viewarticle/559512

What we need is an alternative but there are none. someone mentioned old styled injection sets but hasn't replied as to where they an be had.

Well, the price didn't go up much in Canada.

www.canadadrugs.com...

But here it is about what is quoted.

www.goodrx.com... utm_medium=cpc&utm_term=epipen&utm_campaign=epipen&utm_content=Ad-Group_General&mkwid=8fdYBSnB&crid=2854943615&mp_kw=epipen&mp_mt=e

So basically the increase was in the USA. The insurance on an EPI pen only covers problems with the drug being contaminated and at proper dose in the pen, it is an emergency medicine, purity is critical and well monitored.

If it was an insurance increase, it would also be higher in other countries too. It did not increase much elsewhere it appears.

Another canadian company. www.planetdrugsdirect.com...

Our government needs to take action, the Pharma industry has gone bonkers. Maybe if they didn't advertise so much on TV trying to get people to try their drugs they could lower costs. Maybe if they didn't send Doctors to training seminars at resorts they could reduce the costs too. A lot of incentive programs are still out there titled training programs.

a reply to: seasonal

It's the reason they're not $10 like Bernie thinks they should be.

You'd have to have their internal data to know. But epi is a fairly hazardous med given only in emergent circumstances. And that's a good reason it's not priced like ibuprofen.

a reply to: rickymouse

Other countries aren't as litigious as the US, and I believe many have caps on medical liability payouts. So you can't really compare Canada to the US.

originally posted by: rickymouse
Well, the price didn't go up much in Canada.

www.canadadrugs.com...

But here it is about what is quoted.

www.goodrx.com... utm_medium=cpc&utm_term=epipen&utm_campaign=epipen&utm_content=Ad-Group_General&mkwid=8fdYBSnB&crid=2854943615&mp_kw=epipen&mp_mt=e


So basically the increase was in the USA. The insurance on an EPI pen only covers problems with the drug being contaminated and at proper dose in the pen, it is an emergency medicine, purity is critical and well monitored.

If it was an insurance increase, it would also be higher in other countries too. It did not increase much elsewhere it appears.

Another canadian company. www.planetdrugsdirect.com...

Our government needs to take action, the Pharma industry has gone bonkers. Maybe if they didn't advertise so much on TV trying to get people to try their drugs they could lower costs. Maybe if they didn't send Doctors to training seminars at resorts they could reduce the costs too. A lot of incentive programs are still out there titled training programs.

Are you serious? Bush jr., in his ultimate wisdom, put provisions in his medicare supplement plan to NOT allow medicare/caid to demand volume discounts, or any price concessions at all. Now STOP for a moment and think about that. There is nothing, and I mean nothing you can legally do. Nothing (legally).

I truly believe there is only one way this situation will change per Thomas Jefferson's thoughts on revolution. I have lost faith in our political leadership and business leadership as well.

It will take billions of tears to correct this.

a reply to: Bedlam

If I understood you correctly, there are lots and lots of drugs that are very, very dangerous. They can cost $100s or $6. Did I miss your point? Are you saying the more hazardous the drug the more$ it costs?

Also, we are to just trust there is internal data that points to a $100 per unit canada cost to a $300 per unit us cost. Are you that trusting of a person?

a reply to: seasonal

This is an emergency rescue med with a lot of side effects given in situations where a life threatening emergency is being dealt with by a non-licensed person.

You don't think there's not some major product liability issues?

And you also don't think Mylan doesn't have internal records of how and why their products are priced? Never had much to do with running a business, eh?

Interesting that no one is asking the question as to why all of a sudden there are seemingly thousands of kids violently allergic to things that were tolerated before.

Pssst! Injecting foreign material into a baby's arm times dozens of incidents before they reach adolescence to 'protect' them from an obscure disease isn't harmless or without ramifications and unexpected consequences... neither is 'allowing' our public water providers to put a known neurotoxin in the water supply in the name of 'reducing cavities' which is laughable, and reducing the collective IQ quite obviously.

a reply to: SentientCentenarian

It's likely related to kids not playing in the dirt and being exposed to common allergens at a very young age.

I remember after about six months of having to go get my allergy shots at the doctors office and then waiting for thirty minutes In case of a reaction, I Was finally taught how to give myself the shots so I could do it at home.

They were BIG scary looking buggers.

Scary looking enough that I would have probably thought dying of anaphylactic shock might look rather attractive looking rather than having to jab that thing into my thigh.

But I digress.

But I distinctly remember them costing around $35. And that would have covered the cost of two nights of bar hopping in 1988.

As DAVID64 pointed out above, Big Pharma is basically holding patients hostage. "Ya wanna live? Pay up".

Greed is not good. Sorry Michael Douglas

originally posted by: Bedlam
a reply to: seasonal

This is an emergency rescue med with a lot of side effects given in situations where a life threatening emergency is being dealt with by a non-licensed person.

You don't think there's not some major product liability issues?

And you also don't think Mylan doesn't have internal records of how and why their products are priced? Never had much to do with running a business, eh?

I do own/run a business.

What I believe has nothing to do with the pricing of this product. You are talking in opinions, and wish you would have sources.

If you want to know what I think, the next quarters numbers are coming out and increasing profits is a very big concern. They have a group of captive patients/users and know it.

originally posted by: seasonal

originally posted by: rickymouse
Well, the price didn't go up much in Canada.

www.canadadrugs.com...

But here it is about what is quoted.

www.goodrx.com... utm_medium=cpc&utm_term=epipen&utm_campaign=epipen&utm_content=Ad-Group_General&mkwid=8fdYBSnB&crid=2854943615&mp_kw=epipen&mp_mt=e


So basically the increase was in the USA. The insurance on an EPI pen only covers problems with the drug being contaminated and at proper dose in the pen, it is an emergency medicine, purity is critical and well monitored.

If it was an insurance increase, it would also be higher in other countries too. It did not increase much elsewhere it appears.

Another canadian company. www.planetdrugsdirect.com...

Our government needs to take action, the Pharma industry has gone bonkers. Maybe if they didn't advertise so much on TV trying to get people to try their drugs they could lower costs. Maybe if they didn't send Doctors to training seminars at resorts they could reduce the costs too. A lot of incentive programs are still out there titled training programs.

Are you serious? Bush jr., in his ultimate wisdom, put provisions in his medicare supplement plan to NOT allow medicare/caid to demand volume discounts, or any price concessions at all. Now STOP for a moment and think about that. There is nothing, and I mean nothing you can legally do. Nothing (legally).

I truly believe there is only one way this situation will change per Thomas Jefferson's thoughts on revolution. I have lost faith in our political leadership and business leadership as well.

It will take billions of tears to correct this.

Ok, maybe people should just use coupons instead to buy their Epi-pens. www.helprx.info... &utm_term=Epipen&matchtype=p&campaignid=140168196&adgroupid=778549681

You guys can get all worked up. If I needed an Epi-pen and did not have insurance, I would get it from Canada. Or use the coupon.

a reply to: rickymouse

Until you need chemo for cancer. Got a coupon for that one?