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FDA Approves First Generic Version of EpiPen (go.com)

An anonymous reader quotes a report from ABC News: The U.S. Food and Drug Administration has approved the first generic version of the EpiPen and EpiPen Jr auto injector for the emergency treatment of allergic reactions. The approval is part of the FDA's "longstanding commitment" to providing access to low-cost generic alternatives, FDA Commissioner Scott Gottlieb said in a statement. It is unclear how much the generic product -- manufactured by Teva Pharmaceuticals -- will cost. In August 2016, Mylan Pharmaceuticals was criticized for raising the price of a two-pack of EpiPens to $600. The price of two EpiPens was about $100 in 2009. The brand name version is by far the most popular epinephrine auto-injector on the market. "This approval means patients living with severe allergies who require constant access to life-saving epinephrine should have a lower-cost option, as well as another approved product to help protect against potential drug shortages," said FDA Commissioner Scott Gottlieb in a statement.

136 comments

  1. How...soon...can...I...get...it by elrous0 · · Score: 0

    Need....it.....now

    --
    SJW: Someone who has run out of real oppression, and has to fake it.
  2. Yahoo! Epi For all! by bobbied · · Score: 2

    Generic of course.

    I'm just curious, why are Epi Pens not already generic?

    Then observe the value of competition... The market works, if you let it.

    --
    "File to fit, pound to insert, paint to match" - Aircraft Maintenance 101
  3. Nationalising Medicine by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 1

    (Re-)Nationalisation is what happens to industries that devolve into an orgy of obscene rent-seeking.

    We need more of this sort of thing to scare the bejesus out of MBAs who have grown docile on a generation of Reganomonics and plant media support.

    1. Re:Nationalising Medicine by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      It is just another educational opportunity to watch them fuck up another country.

      I had to break it to you, but when you weren't looking, it already happened.

      What you have failed to see is that ti's Socialism for the corporations and the 1%.

      You've got companies like Walmart who pay so little that their employees have to go on food assistance, and you and I and everyone else is paying for it.

      Corporate CxOs get seven figure compensation packages and tax cuts while Congress raids the Social Security Trust fund that you and I and everyone else has been paying into our whole working lives. Social Security would actually completely solvent to 2060 and beyond if Congress wasn't stealing our money.

      And once upon a time even the janitors at those companies could live on the wages from that one job. These days people doing "service jobs" have to work two or even three jobs to make ends meet.

      And if they don't get health benefits from one of those jobs and get sick or have an accident and go to the ER, who pays their bills? The hospital may "write it off" but they jack up the prices the rest of us pay. And even if you don't see it, it costs you more in higher medical coverage costs. So again, you're paying for it.

      I could go on an on. But keep telling us how socialism is going to ruin this country. I'd say socialism – this perverted socialism for the corporations and the 1% – has already ruined this country.

    2. Re:Nationalising Medicine by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 1

      [AC to preserve moderation]

      Medicine does not fear socialism. It's just another set of government regulations they can capture and use to keep their monopoly going. What medicine really fears is capitalism, which is why you never see international competition, the process that makes everything else we buy cheaper, mentioned as a solution to high prices.

    3. Re: Nationalising Medicine by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      If you nationalize healthcare, you still need someone to run it. All these evil CEOs of insurance companies and drug companies will just become government bureacrats and still make tons of money. Rather than paying 100 bucks a month to your insurance company to have them deny you coverage on an operation, you will be paying your goverment 200 bucks a month to have a government burocrat deny you a needed operation. The same individuals will be running it.

      Look at what happened when the government undid prohibition. The booze runners just went into politics. The Kennedys became president and made more money in government through alcohal taxes than they ever did running booze.

      You need to get the government out of healthcare and get the big corporate interest out of healthcare. Go back to the direct pay model. Direct pay works for everything that is succesfull in the free market. You pay your doctor directly. You do not go through insurance or the Public health service. The price of procedures is spelled out clearly and openly. Health care used to work when we had direct pay. The rich oligarchs have somehow convinced a cowardly public that corporate or governmental bureacrats are better arbitrators of your healthcare than you are.

    4. Re: Nationalising Medicine by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      17.6% gdp on healthcare by the US seems to say otherwise!

      https://www.pbs.org/newshour/health/health-costs-how-the-us-compares-with-other-countries

    5. Re: Nationalising Medicine by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      Where do you buy your insurance? It's more like $1200 a month with a $15,000 annual deductible!

  4. Sucks to be in USA by viperidaenz · · Score: 2, Informative

    Genuine brand named EpiPen's in New Zealand are $NZ120 each. They never skyrocketed like they did in USA.

    The government usually replaces used epipens too, as everyone here is covered medically for accidents and anaphylaxis is usually caused by an accident.

    Can you even buy Anapen's in USA? They're an alternative available in most countries. They've been around since 2010.

    1. Re: Sucks to be in USA by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 1

      a pack of 2 epipen autoinjector costs about 50â here in finland

    2. Re:Sucks to be in USA by demonlapin · · Score: 2

      There are alternatives, but the prescription must state "epinephrine auto-injector", not "EpiPen" - if EpiPen is written, the other cannot be delivered, even if the prescription states that generic substitution is acceptable. I believe this is because it is a device rather than simply a drug.

    3. Re:Sucks to be in USA by Locke2005 · · Score: 1

      What do I need to do to get residency in NZ so I can buy a house there? Are they hiring any Firmware Engineers? I know I need to work there at least 2 years to qualify for medical assistance.

      --
      I've abandoned my search for truth; now I'm just looking for some useful delusions.
    4. Re:Sucks to be in USA by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 1

      There are alternatives, but the prescription must state "epinephrine auto-injector", not "EpiPen" - if EpiPen is written, the other cannot be delivered, even if the prescription states that generic substitution is acceptable. I believe this is because it is a device rather than simply a drug.

      A vial of epinephrine containing two doses is $5 USD. Often a syringe costs more than the drug.

      However the syringe method needs careful attention to dosage amounts.
      Less of an issue is properly injecting it, fortunately being intramuscular makes that easier, and training is readily available, but if you are administering it to yourself vs administering to someone else, that's still a couple details in the middle of an allergic reaction that need paid attention on.

      Epipen and similar devices are supposed to make it "dummy proof" to self administer a standard single dose.

      If the option is between an auto injector and syringe, the auto injector is the better option.
      But if the auto injector isn't an option because its affordable, the syringe method is of course preferred over doing nothing about it.

      While thankfully I have no allergies myself, I've had to administer epinephrine to someone else a few times, and once with a syringe.
      It's terrifying enough keeping all the details in mind knowing every second counts, I can hardly imagine all of that on top of being in the middle of an allergic reaction and trying it.

    5. Re:Sucks to be in USA by viperidaenz · · Score: 1

      Our current government is run by a bunch of leftie vote buyers.
      They bought their way into power with free university education and a bunch of other policies they are now realising can't be funded.

      One of those vote buying policies was making it harder for foreigners to buy residential property, because they did a survey of people at some house auctions and there were a lot of "Asian sounding names" - so they're blaming foreigners for our high house prices.

      Anyone can get medical assistance for accidents here. I doubt there are many firmware engineer jobs though.
      https://www.immigration.govt.n...

    6. Re:Sucks to be in USA by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      Genuine brand named EpiPen's in New Zealand are $NZ120 each

      Yeah but the article earlier said that nobody can afford a place to live in New Zealand.

      Sucks being poor anywhere.

    7. Re:Sucks to be in USA by jedidiah · · Score: 1

      > What do I need to do to get residency in NZ so I can buy a house there?

      You aren't rich enough to buy a house there.

      Before you decide to relocate yourself to a place, you might want to actually get somewhat of a clue about it. You don't even have to visit. You can simply read the local press.

      --
      A Pirate and a Puritan look the same on a balance sheet.
    8. Re:Sucks to be in USA by adolf · · Score: 2

      That's not how this works.

      In the US (in all states I'm aware of), a doctor can write a script for Celexa and the pharmacist can fill it with generic citalopram, *unless* the doctor specifies that the name-brand product be used.

      Normally, on hand-written scripts, this is signified by the notation DAW, which means "Dispense As Written."

    9. Re:Sucks to be in USA by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 1

      Our current government is run by a bunch of leftie vote buyers.
      They bought their way into power with free university education and a bunch of other policies they are now realising can't be funded.

      One of those vote buying policies was making it harder for foreigners to buy residential property, because they did a survey of people at some house auctions and there were a lot of "Asian sounding names" - so they're blaming foreigners for our high house prices.

      Anyone can get medical assistance for accidents here. I doubt there are many firmware engineer jobs though.
      https://www.immigration.govt.n...

      I'd like to highlight this point. To anyone thinking of coming to New Zealand: Yes, it's looking pretty good right now, but the fundamentals of civil society (innocence until proven guilt, free speech, mens rea, financial privacy) are under heavy assault as a people that like to joke about how bad the US is simultaneously swallow all the legislation the US exports to them. New Zealander's are absolutely not the kind of people that will stand against oppression, they're more laid back (read: cowardly and obedient) than many other groups. I recently acquired residence here but I'm regretting not putting the same effort into another location.

      Oh, and by "anyone can get medical assistance for accidents here" we mean "everyone is forced to buy medical insurance with a government". Our ACC has the efficiency and customer service of your DMV thanks to having no competition and coerced customers.

    10. Re:Sucks to be in USA by demonlapin · · Score: 1

      But not if you write “EpiPen”. Like I said, it’s not just a drug, it’s a device. Search medical fora if you don’t believe me. I’m an anesthesiologist, so I don’t have a clinic and thus don’t prescribe stuff, but I did it as a resident, and I’m quite familiar with the usual method. Doesn’t apply to this.

    11. Re:Sucks to be in USA by houghi · · Score: 1

      In Belgium, if a generic drug is available, the doctor must prescribe that, unless for specific reasons.

      If a doctor writes out too many non-generic medicine, an investigation will follow. That would mean at first a reminder as to why and if it does not improve, it cpould mean losing his license over it.

      At the pharmacy they can even propose an alternative. However for them it might be different in that THEIR profit might be higher for a generic drug than for a named one. So even if the sotal amount is lerss, their profit could be more.

      --
      Don't fight for your country, if your country does not fight for you.
    12. Re: Sucks to be in USA by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      It's bitztream the autism-hating, Musk-hating, custom EpiPen-hating, Qualcomm-hating, Firefox tabs-hating, Slashdot editors-hating Slashdot troll!

    13. Re:Sucks to be in USA by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      demonlapin is correct. I have gone through this dance with doctors and pharmacists multiple times now.

      Pharmacist: Epi-pen... let's see, that will be $500, please
      Me: Is there a generic? I asked the doctor to specify generic is allowed.
      Pharmacist: There is no generic for Epi-pen.

      Me: Doc, I need a prescription for "epinephrine auto-injector" NOT "Epi-pen or generic"
      Doctor: Err... what? OK, sure.

      Pharmacist: Here's your epinephrine auto-injector, and it looks like with the manufacturer coupon that you have there is no charge.

      Me: What the @$#~ is wrong with this world?

  5. The only thing this administration's done right... by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    It only took 1.5 years into the Trump administration to actually do something decent. Only time will tell if Trump will find a way to manage to colossally screw this up too. I give it 24 hours.

    This is also the first thing that the FDA has done right in the last decade. It's a small step in the right direction anyway. Still doesn't restore my trust in the organization though. Getting rid of GRAS would go a long way to healing a lot of open wounds.

  6. Good news! by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 1, Interesting

    Now this needs to be approved for Canada as well... Not only are they super expensive, they aren't even in stock! We are seriously experiencing Shortages on EpiPens up here it's ridiculous.

    1. Re: Good news! by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      Impossible Canada has socialized health care so everyone has access to everything they need, for free

  7. Re:Yahoo! Epi For all! by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 1

    I'm just curious, why are Epi Pens not already generic?

    Greed.

    Any other questions?

  8. Re:The only thing this administration's done right by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    What makes your think Orange Julius Caesar had anything to do with this? He's so dumb he probably doesn't even understand what an EpiPen is used for, probably thinks it's steroids or something to give you super-strength like in a video game. So far as I know he hasn't fucked around with the org chart for the FDA so he's go zero to do with this so don't give credit where credit isn't due.

  9. Re:Yahoo! Epi For all! by jeff4747 · · Score: 4, Insightful

    Natural monopoly by the incumbent.

    Generic: "Hey, we could make generic Epipens for about $100 each. The brand name costs $600. Let's sell them for $200 and undercut"

    Incumbent: (Cuts price to $100. Eats small loss per unit)

    Generic: (Goes bankrupt)

    Incumbent: (Raises price back to $600, recoups losses)

  10. Re:Yahoo! Epi For all! by sjames · · Score: 4, Insightful

    In part because the FDA requires each producer to re-test the proven design so much to prove it really is exactly like the already approved one that it's almost as expensive as introducing something new, but with a lot less potential for profit.

    Then you get overly specific legislation like when schools are required to have $600 epi-pens on hand rather than $10 pre-filled with epinephrine syringes.

  11. Re:Yahoo! Epi For all! by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    Why do you hate free market capitalism?

  12. Re:Yahoo! Epi For all! by charliemerritt03 · · Score: 1

    I think you could get generic epinephrine auto injectors prior to this.
    Epi Pen is a (tm) so how you can have a Generic Trademark is puzzling.
    About the only non puzzling thing about pharmaceuticals is the chemistry.

  13. Re:The only thing this administration's done right by bobbied · · Score: 1

    This is also the first thing that the FDA has done right in the last decade. It's a small step in the right direction anyway. Still doesn't restore my trust in the organization though. Getting rid of GRAS would go a long way to healing a lot of open wounds.

    I'm not advocating you trust the FDA, but I wonder why you think getting rid of GARS would be a good idea?

    Generally speaking (pun intended) GARS may not have been subject to the rigor of other additives, but they DO have significant amounts of research, study and actual use history that indicates they are indeed safe for use. So which substances on the GARS list do you object to? Whey? Helium? Nitrogen? Maybe Citric Acid or Nitrous Oxide? Something else?

    Why do you object to these specific things?

    --
    "File to fit, pound to insert, paint to match" - Aircraft Maintenance 101
  14. Win the battle, lose the war by psychic_bacon · · Score: 3, Insightful

    This is just another example of the absurdity of prescription drugs. Obviously there's no reason for Epi Pens to be that expensive, since they weren't that expensive long ago. The real reason for the expense was because a lot of places were required to buy them. Kids are allergic to everything these days (seriously), and so schools need to have epi pens. Would you send your toddler to a preschool without an epi pen? Think of the children! So that cost could be hidden in the budget of "safety" for schools. If you were a consumer, you could avoid them. I had allergy shots and my provider gave me an epi pen prescription. I didn't really need it, but it was in the 1 in a 1000 chance I had a reaction when I wasn't around. But she also gave me a coupon to make it go down to a reasonable cost. But now there's an outcry about this absurdity, and so we get another option. This fixes the tiny problem, allows the drug companies to still make handfuls of money, and no one talks about what is really needed in the US: the government as the only buyer of drugs. If drugs are such that there is only one supplier, with patent protections that give a monopoly on production, there should be a single buyer, that would negotiate an acceptable price, and then this buyer sells to all pharmacies at cost, which leads to an equitable distribution.

    1. Re:Win the battle, lose the war by cascadingstylesheet · · Score: 1

      and no one talks about what is really needed in the US: the government as the only buyer of drugs. If drugs are such that there is only one supplier, with patent protections that give a monopoly on production, there should be a single buyer, that would negotiate an acceptable price, and then this buyer sells to all pharmacies at cost, which leads to an equitable distribution.

      Because that works so well at cost reduction for other things the government is the sole buyer of, like military equipment?

  15. Re:Sooo... by ClickOnThis · · Score: 1

    Should a cup of Starbucks cost a quarter?

    No, but if you'll die if you don't get one, then it shouldn't cost $600.

    --
    If it weren't for deadlines, nothing would be late.
  16. "Popular" by MoralCharacter · · Score: 4, Insightful

    I'm not so sure it'd be appropriate to call a medical product 'popular' when the only reason it makes its sales is because up until now they were the only ones legally allowed to produce this life saving device in the US.
    It's not like Mylan raised the price of their epipens to 600 bucks because they're the Apple of EpiPens here. People either had to cough up the cash or die. Consider that an EpiPen costs $30 to manufacture. (yeah yeah sure, there's shipping costs and the like. But I'm pretty sure they weren't using SpaceX to ship their EpiPens from Pensylvannia, to the rest of the US)

    1. Re:"Popular" by Locke2005 · · Score: 3, Funny

      Their advertising slogan is: "EpiPen: More popular than dying!"

      --
      I've abandoned my search for truth; now I'm just looking for some useful delusions.
    2. Re:"Popular" by snapsnap · · Score: 1

      I don't think Epipen injectors are like my Albuterol inhaler that the generic doesn't work worth a damn, but the name brand one works every time. My doctor writes "no generic" on my prescription each time, but the pharmacist at my local Rite Aid every time still tries to push the generic.

    3. Re:"Popular" by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      My little sister's generic inhalers don't work with a damn. We've had to take her to the ER twice this week due to the terrible air quality in Seattle due to forest fires. Paying for name-brand inhalers would be cheaper than ER visits.

      This week still wasn't as bad as last year when you could see ash falling. I work in an office in downtown Seattle that doesn't have AC so we had our windows open, and you could see ash blowing into our office.

    4. Re:"Popular" by Crashmarik · · Score: 1

      It's great fun when a powerful senator is your dad and can lean on the FDA.

    5. Re:"Popular" by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      I'm not so sure it'd be appropriate to call a medical product 'popular' when the only reason it makes its sales is because up until now they were the only ones legally allowed to produce this life saving device in the US.

      Only Mylan can make EpiPen because it's a brand-name, much like only Apple can make iPhone.
      There have been other brands of epinephrine auto injectors approved for use by the USA's FDA for many years now.
      Look up AdrenaClick And Auvi-Q, or epinephrine auto-injector

  17. Re:Sooo... by Locke2005 · · Score: 1

    Wait... you mean all my coworkers aren't serious about dying if they don't get their Starbucks in the morning???

    --
    I've abandoned my search for truth; now I'm just looking for some useful delusions.
  18. Re:Yahoo! Epi For all! by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    Nice loaded question there; doesn't warrant any direct response.

  19. Re:Yahoo! Epi For all! by Locke2005 · · Score: 1

    Why do they charge $600 for an EpiPen? Because they CAN!

    --
    I've abandoned my search for truth; now I'm just looking for some useful delusions.
  20. Because EpiPens are not a drug. by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    They are a device. The drug in them, that has been generic for DECADES. Anyone could have made their own EpiPen. They just haven't.

  21. Re:Yahoo! Epi For all! by Locke2005 · · Score: 2

    EpiPens are not already generic because every time you change the delivery mechanism, you restart the patent timer. Yeah, they made a minor change to the mechanism to keep it patentable. How that prevents competitors from using the old mechanism is beyond me.

    --
    I've abandoned my search for truth; now I'm just looking for some useful delusions.
  22. Re:Sooo... by Drethon · · Score: 1

    Wait... you mean all my coworkers aren't serious about dying if they don't get their Starbucks in the morning???

    Ask them for the hospital bill as proof, I can show you mine.

  23. Your health system is a joke. by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    Provided for free in Australia for people with anaphylaxis.

    1. Re:Your health system is a joke. by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      Provided for free in Australia for people with anaphylaxis.

      If by free you mean paid for by the medical coverage you are required to buy, paid for from some part of the (taxes) withheld from yours and everyone else's paycheck. Right?

      It's (effectively) free for me too. I have health care too. It's paid for by having the payments withheld from my paycheck too.

      The major difference I see between your health system and ours, is that your system covers everyone – whether they have a job and are paying for health care or not – and ours does not.

      And trust me, I'd like to see ours be more like yours. Because the way things are now, by the time I pay income taxes, social security, medicare, and health care, I'm paying more than the 50% or so that most Europeans and Ozzies are paying for their equivalents.

    2. Re:Your health system is a joke. by jedidiah · · Score: 1

      I can appreciate those of us who aren't helpless helping out those who genuinely are. However, there is no reason for those of us that are independent adults who can fend for ourselves to be wards of the state. We are not children. Not only should we be able to fend for ourselves, we should be able to help fend for others.

      Beyond that, if you want the likes of Trump, Cruz, and Ryan to have MORE control over your health care you are simply nuts.

      If you are looking for some kind of "bargain" then all you are going to do is HARM those of us that actually use the medical system.

      You can't suck money and resources out of the system and expect the same results.

      --
      A Pirate and a Puritan look the same on a balance sheet.
    3. Re:Your health system is a joke. by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      I can appreciate those of us who aren't helpless helping out those who genuinely are. However, there is no reason for those of us that are independent adults who can fend for ourselves to be wards of the state. We are not children. Not only should we be able to fend for ourselves, we should be able to help fend for others.

      Very Libertarian of you. But we live in a society. We're social. Socialism needn't be a bogeyman. We can define what "socialism" means to us. It isn't, and it needn't be USSR-style central planning and Stalinist depotism. (Despite the orange utang's best attempts to at being a Stalinist despot.) We can have social healthcare... And it doesn't require that the those who can fend for themselves surrender to be wards of the state.

      Beyond that, if you want the likes of Trump, Cruz, and Ryan to have MORE control over your health care you are simply nuts.

      Not sure where you get that from. What I wrote implied nothing of the sort. Quite the opposite, I'm disgusted by the the fact that there is a cabal of white males who are deciding what health care women are allowed to receive. (Oh, and BTW, I'm a white male.)

      If you are looking for some kind of "bargain" then all you are going to do is HARM those of us that actually use the medical system.

      Citation required. Because if I look at the civilized world, I see that they get more. For less. Oh, and I do use the medical system, thank you very much.

      You can't suck money and resources out of the system and expect the same results.

      Yeah, but nobody is talking about sucking money and resources out. Well, you are. But nobody else is.

    4. Re:Your health system is a joke. by fafalone · · Score: 1

      You can't suck money and resources out of the system and expect the same results.

      Of course you can. All you have to do is say the results are the same or better, then to your supporters that's the new reality. Whether they actually are is immaterial, since anything contradicting your narrative is just Fake News. Lying enemy of the people? Fake News. Congressional Budget Office? Fake News. Congressional Research Service? Fake News!

  24. Re:Yahoo! Epi For all! by alvinrod · · Score: 4, Informative

    I think you're forgetting the part where the government forbids the sale of the generic completely. As has been the case up until now.

    Also, if this were a common and accurate portrayal of events, why am I able to buy generic versions of many other types of drugs and medications? Shouldn't this have happened in ever other instance as well?

  25. Re:Yahoo! Epi For all! by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 2, Informative

    Read the article. These new ones are not really actually generic either. It's still Mylan screwing over customers. They are simply changing the branding and the branding only and charging less, not a lot less though. It's still going to be about $300 for 2 pens...

    They are doing this in a really shitty attempt to save face. It's not going to work.

    Your question is a valid one, why is there not a generic? Also, why is another company not creating a generic. This is no different than Chevy vs GMC. The same fucking truck, same features, same materials, built on the same assembly lines, but with different logos and different costs. Mylan has now 2 brands to sell and make even more money off of.

  26. Re:Yahoo! Epi For all! by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 1

    I don't see the point in having emotions towards it, since it has never exhibited and likely never will.

    *laughs in patentsystem*

  27. Re:Yahoo! Epi For all! by godel_56 · · Score: 3, Informative

    Generic: "Hey, we could make generic Epipens for about $100 each. The brand name costs $600. Let's sell them for $200 and undercut"

    Incumbent: (Cuts price to $100. Eats small loss per unit)

    Generic: (Goes bankrupt)

    Incumbent: (Raises price back to $600, recoups losses)

    Except your price estimates are a bit off. Experts say the actual cost of manufacture to Mylan is likely only $20 to $30 per pen.

    http://time.com/money/4481786/how-much-epipen-costs-to-make/

  28. Re:Yahoo! Epi For all! by bobbied · · Score: 1

    Why do they charge $600 for an EpiPen? Because they CAN!

    Only because they are the only ones supplying them. I say we encourage generic makers to enter the market and fix that issue.

    --
    "File to fit, pound to insert, paint to match" - Aircraft Maintenance 101
  29. Re:Yahoo! Epi For all! by bobbied · · Score: 1

    EpiPens are not already generic because every time you change the delivery mechanism, you restart the patent timer. Yeah, they made a minor change to the mechanism to keep it patentable. How that prevents competitors from using the old mechanism is beyond me.

    Then, wouldn't the previous delivery system come out of patent and generic manufacturers be enabled to make them? There has got to be more to this.

    --
    "File to fit, pound to insert, paint to match" - Aircraft Maintenance 101
  30. Re:Yahoo! Epi For all! by Crashmarik · · Score: 4, Informative

    Jeebus, I can understand not knowing how the process works, but really you can't make it past the damn headline without incorporating the relevant information ?

    FDA Approves First Generic Version of EpiPen

    That is why there was no generic on the market, none were improved. Now if you want to go poking fingers about how horrible the system is, the CEO of Meylan (Heather Bresch) is Joe Manchin's daughter and oddly enough the FDA has been curiously well disposed towards his little girl's company

    http://fortune.com/2016/09/07/...

    Oh and he's a Democrat by the way, something to remember the next time they promise free healthcare.

  31. Re:Yahoo! Epi For all! by Crashmarik · · Score: 1

    improved should read approved.

  32. Re:Yahoo! Epi For all! by angel'o'sphere · · Score: 1

    Wasn't there a threat/article about "capitalism" a few days ago on /. .... ?

    --
    Cost free eBook I read (by iBook/Kobo/Amazon/ObookO/Gutenberg etc.): "The Green Odyssey" by Philip Jose Farmer.
  33. Re:Yahoo! Epi For all! by MobyDisk · · Score: 4, Informative

    part because the FDA requires each producer to re-test the proven design so much to prove it really is exactly like the already approved one that it's almost as expensive as introducing something new, but with a lot less potential for profit.

    As someone who has done this repeatedly, I can tell you that proving equivalency is an order of magnitude cheaper than proving a new design.

  34. Car analogy fail. by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 1

    This is no different than Chevy vs GMC. The same fucking truck, same features, same materials, built on the same assembly lines, but with different logos and different costs.

    I can pretty much guarantee the costs are (exactly) the same. Why are there identical Chevy and GMC (and Cadillac Escalade) trucks? Marketing!.

    GMC and Cadillac dealers (usually*) don't sell Chevy. So when a trucking company is buying 50 big trucks but also wants one or two or twenty pickups, the GMC dealer has GMC brand pickup trucks to sell. When traditional Cadillac buyers started buying Chevy Suburbans, and Cadillac dealers had nothing to sell, GM invented Cadillac Escalades for Cadillac dealers to sell. It's all about Chevy, GMC, and Cadillac dealers having their own brand of product on the lot to sell.

    But if Mylan is the maker and distributor of both the generic and name brand epipens, again, I can pretty much guarantee that the costs are exactly the same. But I'm sure they knew that there was going to be a call for a "low cost" generic. If they had done nothing, the name brand epipen would still be selling for $100 per pair, and the generics would, by definition, have to sell for a whole lot less.

    But by being slime balls, now the generic will be $200 or $300 per pair. Probably nobody will ever even buy the name brand epipen, and Myland doesn't care; everyone feels like they come away winners with a $200 generic compared to the $600 name brand.

    And Mylan laughs all the way to the bank.

  35. Bobbied is a fucking moron by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    Can you believe this guy? He's got to be playing stupid, there's no way people can be this dumb.

  36. Re:Yahoo! Epi For all! by jordanjay29 · · Score: 2
    I did, did you? From the article:

    It is unclear how much the generic product -- manufactured by Teva Pharmaceuticals -- will cost.

    Teva is an Israeli company. As far as I can tell, it has no links to Mylan. If you know differently, care to share?

  37. Re:Yahoo! Epi For all! by Tough+Love · · Score: 0

    Actually, there is less than $1 of epinephrine in each Epipen.

    --
    When all you have is a hammer, every problem starts to look like a thumb.
  38. So Trump cut two yrs off the certification process by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    Shame it couldn't be more, but there is still a LOT of swamp that needs draining.

  39. Re: The only thing this administration's done righ by Nidi62 · · Score: 1

    It's because reigning in drug prices is popular right now, and I can almost guarantee you that Trump has no financial attachment to the medical industry, making it a safe target for him.

    --
    The only thing necessary for evil to triumph is for it to be pitted against a slightly greater evil
  40. Re: Yahoo! Epi For all! by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    That's not manufacturing costs and clearing an atom for atom molecule generic of a brand name drug with uncle Sam costs millions. Gotta make that back.

  41. Re:Yahoo! Epi For all! by jedidiah · · Score: 2

    > Actually, there is less than $1 of epinephrine in each Epipen.

    That remark would be relevant if you were only getting the drug. Since you aren't just getting the drug but also the delivery system, that remark is utter nonsense.

    This is precisely the kind of inane bullshit that completely pollutes discussion of this issue.

    --
    A Pirate and a Puritan look the same on a balance sheet.
  42. Re:The only thing this administration's done right by jedidiah · · Score: 2

    > What makes your think Orange Julius Caesar had anything to do with this?

    This didn't happen during the administration of your lord and savior.

    --
    A Pirate and a Puritan look the same on a balance sheet.
  43. Re:Sooo... by jedidiah · · Score: 0

    > No, but if you'll die if you don't get one, then it shouldn't cost $600.

    That will be a fun way to ensure that nobody ever makes anything useful for you EVER.

    $600 really isn't that much in this area really. You clearly have don't have enough real experience here to have ANY sort of perspective at all.

    Attitudes like yours ultimately kill people.

    --
    A Pirate and a Puritan look the same on a balance sheet.
  44. Teva? by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    Great. The company that just had their high blood pressure drugs recalled for containing cancer causing impurities is now making this. I'm sure they have the same quality control in place.

  45. Re:Sooo... by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    Coffee and computers trade in a free market. Medicine does not. You don't even know what anything costs until the moment you buy it.

  46. Re:Yahoo! Epi For all! by Tough+Love · · Score: 1, Troll

    Actually, there is less than $1 of epinephrine in each Epipen.

    It is relevant in any case. It is a statement of fact. You come across like you have a vested interest.

    --
    When all you have is a hammer, every problem starts to look like a thumb.
  47. Re: Yahoo! Epi For all! by Tough+Love · · Score: 1

    That's not manufacturing costs

    And what do you imagine that manufacturing costs of this glorified syringe actually are?

    --
    When all you have is a hammer, every problem starts to look like a thumb.
  48. Re:Yahoo! Epi For all! by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    The drug companies love the FDA. It is guaranteed profit in the name of making the public safe. The rich write the rules, in the guise of keeping the public safe, but the laws are written so that only the riches most financially powerful can abide by those laws.

    It has never been about safety. It has always been about controlling access, and it is very effective. I congratulate the rich on creating a very affective scheme to keep the public subservient to you companies. Bravo.

    Those who say that we need the government to control the corps are very naive. There is not difference between having a corporation control you life or the government control your life. You need individuals controlling their life. Abolish the FDA, AMA. and insurance companies. Allow individuals to buy their individual heath care from individual doctors. We do not have a free market in healthcare, we have corporate oligarchies propped up by the best government money can buy.

  49. Re:Yahoo! Epi For all! by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    To market an epipen (or any other out-of-patent drug), you need to have your process approved by the FDA. The cost to get through this approval process is quite high. It is the root cause of a lot of these "price of an old drug goes up 10x" stories. The company that developed and got approval for the drug sells out to a hedge fund, who then crank the price. Most of the time, the market for the drug is so small that it isn't worth it for another company to certify a line to make the generic; the epipen obviously has a reasonably large market, and it was worth it to these people.

    The fix here is for the government to bring down the price of FDA certification, but one party is split between shoveling government money into the hedge fund and destabilizing the drug research industry through nationalization, and the other doesn't think healthcare is a thing, so good luck.

  50. Re:Yahoo! Epi For all! by clovis · · Score: 1

    Generic of course.

    I'm just curious, why are Epi Pens not already generic?

    Then observe the value of competition... The market works, if you let it.

    There is already a generic epinephrine injector that's been around for about 13 years called Adrenaclick. I bought mine from Walmart for about $160, I think.
    There's also the Auvi-Q since 2012. https://www.drugs.com/history/...

    https://www.consumerreports.or...
    https://www.usatoday.com/story...

  51. Now do Insulin by SuperKendall · · Score: 3, Insightful

    Apparently Insulin has shot up in recent years. It seems crazy it should cost much at all, it's been made forever...

    --
    "There is more worth loving than we have strength to love." - Brian Jay Stanley
    1. Re:Now do Insulin by houghi · · Score: 1

      Then do everything else.

      --
      Don't fight for your country, if your country does not fight for you.
    2. Re:Now do Insulin by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      So the biggest health care market in the world suddenly decides to force every company to make all drugs at cost. You don't see the unintended consequences for that, not just for us but every health care system on the planet? Our health care system, as terrible as it is, is paying for the medical research and the top tier scientists that do it for every public system on the planet. If medical research becomes a public system, then in 20 years you will have the same sort of staffing pool that you get in US teaching. I don't have a better solution, but you are playing with fire.

    3. Re:Now do Insulin by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      The old regular & NPH insulins (standard treatment until the mid-90s, and many states do not require a prescription for these types) are still available for less than $25 (at Walmart pharmacies). It's what I've been using for over 20 years and never saw a good reason to change since my a1c is always under 6%. Bizarrely, I've met a lot of T1Ds who had no idea this was even an option! But yeah, the other stuff is crazy. And not just insulin. Glucagon injections used to cost $100 per dose, and now they're over $300, making it cheaper to let EMS take care of it -- not kidding, my last event cost $130 and I considered it a bargain! There was a new form of pre-mixed glucagon recently approved, but no idea how much it costs. Too much, I'm sure.

  52. Re:Yahoo! Epi For all! by adolf · · Score: 1

    That's not how any of this works.

    After a patent expires, the specific things covered by that patent become free to use. That's the whole point of the system.

    There's no law requiring one to patent all methods used in a device all at once: You can't *force* someone to patent something.

    There's also no law preventing one from patenting methods later down the road: The invention doesn't have to be new or previously-unseen to be patentable. It just has to pass the usual muster for a patentable thing. If that newly-patented, old thing is an important component that has been used and marketed for decades already, so be it.

    It's shitty and divisive to spread patents out like this.

    But the timer isn't reset: All of the patents for the Epipen that are 20 or more years old (such as the 5 that date back to 1987) are expired, and those inventions are free for everyone to use.

  53. Re:Yahoo! Epi For all! by magzteel · · Score: 1

    Generic of course.

    I'm just curious, why are Epi Pens not already generic?

    Then observe the value of competition... The market works, if you let it.

    Drugs become "generic". EpiPens are a patented, approved, and proven simple and reliable drug delivery system.

  54. Re:Yahoo! Epi For all! by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    Yeah sure pal, he's actually a DINO.
    Democrat in name only and tends to vote right along with your buddies in the repugnant, oops, I meant rethuglican party, because the state he happens to represent votes ass backwards conservative 9 out of 10 times anyhow. So in reality, he's just what you guys asked for way back in the 90's, a republican pretending to be a democrat so your ilk could get your f@#'d up legislation passed "bipartisanly" to screw over poor people and make corporate leadership rich.
    Maybe you'll remember that next time you try and talk smack about democrats.
    I'll also try and remember that you insist on paying $600 your epi-pens if ever your god blesses you or your immediate family with a fatal allergy in the future.

  55. Re:Yahoo! Epi For all! by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    You can get a syringe and a needle to inject that for another $2. Factor in some antibacterial swabs to clean the area and a dressing and you've *maybe* spent $5. Now a syringe is not an auto-injector - generic auto-injectors cost $15 - $20. You can put together your own auto epinephrine injector from parts, including a label with instructions for the unskilled user, for about $30. That's paying full price and not getting any bulk discounts.

    "But wait!" you cry. "That's dangerous to practice medicine on yourself! What if you get it wrong???" People have been self-injecting insulin, self-infusing clotting factor and self treating for decades. Those that are cautious and have appropriate practices just don't have problems. Building your own sterile epinephrine auto-injector with the proper dosage really isn't any different. Be responsible.

    Now a *company* that wanted to implement this at scale with improved processes, greater volumes, direct-sourcing of product, better features, etc could likely deliver one for less than $50.

  56. Re:Yahoo! Epi For all! by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    Natural monopoly by the incumbent.

    Generic: "Hey, we could make generic Epipens for about $100 each. The brand name costs $600. Let's sell them for $200 and undercut"

    Incumbent: (Cuts price to $100. Eats small loss per unit)

    Generic: (Goes bankrupt)

    Incumbent: (Raises price back to $600, recoups losses)

    Ah, predatory pricing, a well-established market failure that any economist worth his salt will be able to explain fully and evidence with several major historical examples. Who could attribute the high price to the government completely forbidding competition in view of this totally not bullshit explanation.

  57. Re:Yahoo! Epi For all! by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    Yeah sure pal, he's actually a DINO.
    Democrat in name only and tends to vote right along with your buddies in the repugnant, oops, I meant rethuglican party, because the state he happens to represent votes ass backwards conservative 9 out of 10 times anyhow. So in reality, he's just what you guys asked for way back in the 90's, a republican pretending to be a democrat so your ilk could get your f@#'d up legislation passed "bipartisanly" to screw over poor people and make corporate leadership rich.
    Maybe you'll remember that next time you try and talk smack about democrats.
    I'll also try and remember that you insist on paying $600 your epi-pens if ever your god blesses you or your immediate family with a fatal allergy in the future.

    Yeah, and Hillary and Bill didn't go from broke to billionaires, and Nancy Pelosi and Feinstein aren't play you lot like violins. But hey if you ever need an epi pen, remember it was Trump's administration that got you a cheaper alternative. I'm hoping your too hateful to use and buy the full price mylan product.

  58. Re:Yahoo! Epi For all! by thegarbz · · Score: 1

    Epipens cost $100 each in Australia (that's $72USD). And that's without funding. Epipens are listed on the Pharmaceutical Benefits Scheme so if you actually need them rather than just buying them off the shelf you get them with a doctor's prescription for $38 ($27USD)

  59. Re:Yahoo! Epi For all! by tlhIngan · · Score: 1

    Generic of course.

    I'm just curious, why are Epi Pens not already generic?

    Then observe the value of competition... The market works, if you let it.

    The drug (Epinephrine) is generic and the amount in an EpiPen costs under $1 at the pharmacy. It's super cheap and super available.

    The part that's patented is the "auto-injector" part. You know, the bit that you jab into your leg and it injects that drug into you. And that's the part they pumped up the prices up on even though it's probably made up of plastic and metal that costs under $1 in raw materials.

    The reason you need to have two EpiPens is that one may not have enough dose, and getting approval for an auto injector that has twice as much drug just costs a lot of money. When they're already tossing money in your direction, why bother?

  60. Re:Yahoo! Epi For all! by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    They also didn't invent the autoinjector. The military has been using auto-injectors for decades.

  61. Re:Yahoo! Epi For all! by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    Pulling shit out of your ass eh?

  62. Re: Yahoo! Epi For all! by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    Yup, got one in my hand right now. Told my doctor I would do without before buying another EpiPen.

  63. Re:Yahoo! Epi For all! by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    No he's a politician. He's a liberal Democrat but represents a State that has some very conservative pockets of folks so he'll say/do/vote however he needs to just to keep his seat.

    He has always voted Democrat on the big issues, only sides with Republicans when otherwise it would directly affect his re-election.

  64. Re:Yahoo! Epi For all! by sjbe · · Score: 1

    Oh and he's a Democrat by the way, something to remember the next time they promise free healthcare.

    I have never seen anyone (sane) promise "free healthcare" since there is no such thing. What they promise is healthcare for everyone. You know, like every other civilized country on the planet. We SHARE the cost and make it available to all without bankrupting the less wealthy among us in the process. Heaven forbid we share the costs and give a shit about our fellow citizens.

  65. Re:Yahoo! Epi For all! by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    Good news, the last Democratic attempt shared those costs all the way up to the wealthy. Now anyone with any major health issue who isn't absurdly wealthy can look forward to losing their home for basic major health care. And they are so scared they'll have to pay so much for something that turns up in a well-visit that nobody that is healthy is actually seeking standard medical checks. Can't wait for the upgrade!

  66. Re:Yahoo! Epi For all! by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    Natural monopoly by the incumbent.

    Generic: "Hey, we could make generic Epipens for about $100 each. The brand name costs $600. Let's sell them for $200 and undercut"

    Incumbent: (Cuts price to $100. Eats small loss per unit)

    Generic: (Goes bankrupt)

    Incumbent: (Raises price back to $600, recoups losses)

    The issue with the last step is that another company can threaten to restart the cycle. As long as Incumbent keeps their price artificially high, there will always be another Generic. And in some countries, when Incumbent keeps dropping their price to block the latest Generic, that may qualify as illegal restraint of trade.

    This isn't ECON 101 stuff, this is ECON 255 stuff.

  67. Re:Yahoo! Epi For all! by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    Come to Malaysia.
    Cataract eye surgery is usd250/myr1000 but has a 2 to 5 months wait. International level eye doctors n facilities. (indonesia n Thailand come over to msia for health tourism)

    Delivering a baby, if its all scheduled n shit, is less than usd100. Prepare to be warded with 2 to 3 other mums in the same room tho(single n double beds r for private)

  68. Re: Yahoo! Epi For all! by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    It's bitztream the autism-hating, custom EpiPen-hating, Musk-hating, Qualcomm-hating, Firefox tabs-hating, Slashdot editors-hating Slashdot troll!

  69. Not forcing anyone by SuperKendall · · Score: 1

    It's not forcing anyone to "make drugs at cost", it's allowing more than one company to make especially widely used drugs - for drugs that have been around a very long time, thus profits have been long recovered for R&D.

    The whole intent behind patent and copyright systems is that eventually everyone gets to make use of inventions, so too should be true of drugs.

    Basically, it's just allowing competition where before there was none. Doesn't get much more American than that.

    --
    "There is more worth loving than we have strength to love." - Brian Jay Stanley
  70. Re:Sooo... by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    > What other products should the whiny masses get to dictate pricing on?
    The ones where the whiny corporations get to dictate immunity from the monopolent office.

  71. Re:Yahoo! Epi For all! by jeff4747 · · Score: 1

    I think you're forgetting the part where the government forbids the sale of the generic completely. As has been the case up until now.

    I think you're forgetting that someone has to decide to make a generic and apply for FDA approval first.

    Companies look at the natural monopoly and Mylan's anticompetitive history, and don't start the ball rolling on making one.

  72. Re:Yahoo! Epi For all! by jeff4747 · · Score: 2

    The FDA doesn't just approve generics that do not exist yet. Someone has to decide to make a generic, and then seek FDA approval.

    With Mylan's anticompetitive history, anyone wading into this space knows that Mylan will slash their price to drive the generic out of the market. So no one decided to lose a giant pile of money developing a generic.

    This particular company is betting that Mylan has attracted enough scrutiny that they won't be able to do it without antitrust regulators going after Mylan. We'll see if they pull it off.

  73. Re:Sooo... by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    I'll double-down on the Serious Answer: If we're the ones who hand out absolute control of an imaginary ownership, is there a reason we have to give it to them with no strings attached? Is absolutely unconditional power necessary for MUH INNOVATIONS or can we put basic sanity checks against unimpeded rampancy?

  74. Re:Yahoo! Epi For all! by jeff4747 · · Score: 1

    Do you need me to link the definition of "example" for you?

  75. Re:Yahoo! Epi For all! by jeff4747 · · Score: 1

    The issue with the last step is that another company can threaten to restart the cycle

    That threat has to be credible to be effective.

    We're not talking about something easy-to-make like a pill. An autoinjector is significantly more complex. So higher R&D costs, as well as more FDA approval work.

    So another company saying "we're gonna come get you" is not as much of a threat because it's going to take that company longer to develop and get approval for their version. That gives Mylan plenty of time to react and thus cause far more damage to the generic than to their business.

  76. Re:Bobbied is a moron. by Rhipf · · Score: 2

    Mylan has patent protection that lasts through 2025. So why is a generic version coming to market now?
    Mylan to launch generic version of EpiPen, at half the cost

  77. Re:Yahoo! Epi For all! by jeff4747 · · Score: 1

    Who could attribute the high price to the government completely forbidding competition in view of this totally not bullshit explanation.

    The government did not forbid competition. Anyone could develop a generic, get it approved and sell it. For decades.

    Mylan's anticompetitive history caused companies to decide that losing a giant pile of money developing a generic only to get crushed by the incumbent was not in their best interest. The government's role is a relatively minor increase in development cost.

  78. Re:Yahoo! Epi For all! by jeff4747 · · Score: 2

    why am I able to buy generic versions of many other types of drugs and medications?

    Pills are relatively cheap and easy to develop. Mix drug with already-approved filler and you're basically done.

    Autoinjectors are more complicated and require more FDA approvals, since it's both a drug and a medical device. That means longer R&D time and R&D cost, which makes it easier for Mylan to harm the competitor much more than Mylan.

    Plus, Mylan has been significantly more aggressive on pricing than other companies, so the assumption has been they would be aggressive here too.

  79. Re:Bobbied is a moron. by tlhIngan · · Score: 1

    Mylan has patent protection that lasts through 2025. So why is a generic version coming to market now?
    Mylan to launch generic version of EpiPen, at half the cost

    Because the patent is on the device itself. The drug is generic and has been for many years (hint: you can buy it super cheap - the dispensing fee probably costs more than the drug itself).

    If you don't do what the patent says, you can get a new patent on your auto drug dispenser.

  80. Re:Bobbied is a moron. by samwichse · · Score: 3, Informative

    Because they existed before 2009, but Mylan changed the design slightly around then and reapplied for a patent on the "new improved" design.

    This generic can be exactly the same as a pre-2009 model and still work just fine.

  81. Re:Yahoo! Epi For all! by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    Look how abusive, corrupt and evil drug, insurance and health companies are with all the regulations.

    They would be downright murderous without it.

    numbnuts

  82. Re:Yahoo! Epi For all! by sjames · · Score: 1

    No, it pretty much comes out on it's own. Why, are you soliciting for employment?

  83. Re:Yahoo! Epi For all! by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    Spotted the Mylan shill.

    How does it feel to not have a soul? You fuckstains are worse than Dexter.

    numbnuts

  84. Re:Yahoo! Epi For all! by Locke2005 · · Score: 1

    Yeah, my Metformin went from $10/month to $400/month. Why? The new prescription was "extended release". Same exact drug, but making it dissolve slowly is PATENTABLE!

    --
    I've abandoned my search for truth; now I'm just looking for some useful delusions.
  85. Re:Yahoo! Epi For all! by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    The USA doesn't have free market capitalism, it has crony capitalism which loses almost all of the supposed benefits of capitalism. The USA has been that way to some degree almost since it was founded, but definitely since the end of the Civil War.

  86. Re:Yahoo! Epi For all! by Tough+Love · · Score: 1

    Actually, there is less than $1 of epinephrine in each Epipen.

    Modding it down does not change the fact. What kind of subhuman does it take to do that, with millions of at risk children unable to pay the ransom?

    --
    When all you have is a hammer, every problem starts to look like a thumb.
  87. Re:Yahoo! Epi For all! by Tough+Love · · Score: 1

    Actually, there is less than $1 of epinephrine in each Epipen.

    It is relevant in any case. It is a statement of fact. You come across like you have a vested interest.

    Wow, somebody is systematically going through and modding down this factual information. Paid to do it, I assume.

    --
    When all you have is a hammer, every problem starts to look like a thumb.
  88. Re:Sooo... by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    https://staticseekingalpha.a.s...

    This isn't inflation, and it isn't the fundamental price of the units increasing over time, and it isn't the case that EpiPen was previously unprofitable. This is not how prices are supposed to look in a free market. This is a market failure.

    Attitudes that say that it's okay for the market to fail at generating lifesaving medicines also kill people, just as surely as the attitude that everything that saves lives must be cheap.

    By all means, if you think it's important, then let the federal government take the monopoly back and make one giant direct deposit into Mylan's bank account to make them whole -- I'd actually be pretty okay with that system, though we'd have to work out details. If you don't think the federal government should transfer a bunch of cash to the company, why does the federal government grant monopoly rights?

  89. Re:Yahoo! Epi For all! by Crashmarik · · Score: 1

    Here's the history of the product

    https://www.businessinsider.co...

    maybe you should acquaint yourself with the facts before going off on these matters ?

  90. First generic? CVS is already there by Tony+Isaac · · Score: 1

    CVS has been selling a generic version of the EpiPen since the beginning of 2017.

    https://www.pharmacytimes.com/...

  91. How's life in the hypocrite lane?

  92. Re: Bobbied is a moron. by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    How did they get the patent itself?, I thought it was invented by an official or someone involved with the department of defense.

  93. Re:Yahoo! Epi For all! by sjames · · Score: 1

    Actually, the FDA came about to say you can't just put any old crap in and call it medicine. Specifically, diethelyne glycol in in a children's Elixir Sulfanilamide formulation. Then it said you couldn't just go giving untested drugs to pregnant women such as thalidomide.

    It does seem to have jumped the shark since then, but that is a call to reform (literally) the FDA, not eliminate it categorically.

  94. free market ftw by micahraleigh · · Score: 1

    A company overpriced their product and then a much cheaper version came out.

    Free markets accomplish things, people.

  95. Re:Yahoo! Epi For all! by Insanity+Defense · · Score: 1

    Oh and he's a Democrat by the way, something to remember the next time they promise free healthcare.

    He almost always votes with the Republicans though.

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