Any epi-pen users here? What are you doing now that epi-pens are expensive??!?

[Ns1]

So I've been looking to replace the wife's epi-pens since they're expired...I just found out that they've increased in price 450% since the mid 00's!!!!

Mylan has raised the list price of EpiPens over 450 percent since 2004, after adjusting for inflation, according to data provided by Elsevier’s Gold Standard Drug Database. A pack of two EpiPens cost about $100 in today’s dollars in 2004. The list price now tops $600. Some emergency medical services buying directly from medical supply companies pay even more — upwards of $900 for a pack of two.

and I bet this was the real reason:

SIEGEL: This story starts in 2007 when the drugmaker Mylan bought EpiPen from a German drug company.

So what are you guys doing? Paying out the ass? Using syringes? Using one of the competitors? Why the fuck aren't more companies in this area?


//edit

omg

SIEGEL: Since 2007, Mylan has boosted sales, and also, the price has gone up. It used to be $57 for a dose wholesale. How much has it gone up?

KOONS: Nowadays, after insurance discounts, a package of two EpiPens costs about $415.

SIEGEL: And you can't go to the pharmacy and buy a single EpiPen.

KOONS: No. Mylan only sells them in two-packs now, partly because in 2010, there were some federal guidelines that said patients who have severe allergies have to carry two pens rather than just one. There are instances where someone could have an allergic reaction, and they might need a second EpiPen.

http://www.npr.org/2015/09/30/44479...nsformed-epipen-into-a-billion-dollar-product

 

[Ns1]

Replying to myself so this doesn't get lost in the OP, but fuck I might have to go to Canada!

SIEGEL: Yes. You write about one woman who has allergies and who had real sticker shock at the price of EpiPens. She went to Canada to buy instead. You get them a lot cheaper there.

KOONS: Yeah. Last year when she went to Canada, she was able to get a single EpiPen for $100. And then she had to rely on one expired EpiPen and the one Pen she bought in Canada. And she said that was pretty much the best she could do. That's how it works. It's just much cheaper in Canada because there are different mechanisms in place to keep a cap on drug prices.

 

[Slew Foot]

Lol, just another day in the pharm industry. But just keep blaming doctors for your health costs

 

[Eli]

We bend over and take it.

We keep them around due to our having beehives...

 

[Ns1]

We bend over and take it.

We keep them around due to our keeping bees.

you're in OR, a trip to Canada isn't that bad. And evidently 2 epipens + round trip transport to Canada is still less $$$ than 2 epipens in US.

 

[Carson Dyle]

Isn't it fairly easy to order pharmaceuticals from Canada?

 

[Imp]

you're in OR, a trip to Canada isn't that bad. And evidently 2 epipens + round trip transport to Canada is still less $$$ than 2 epipens in US.

Is that be legal?

Plan B: Guess you could lay down and rot if you have an allergic reaction.

 

[lxskllr]

Are they really expired, or soft expired? I'd research the drug to see how stable it is. If syringes are sigificantly cheaper, I'd use those with perhaps one or two pens if they're expected to be used by people without experience.

 

[Ns1]

Are they really expired, or soft expired? I'd research the drug to see how stable it is. If syringes are sigificantly cheaper, I'd use those with perhaps one or two pens if they're expected to be used by people without experience.

I'm okay with like, 3 month old expired medication, but after a few years....

 

[cliftonite]

I think it was $30 for a 2 pack through our insurance.

 

[Eli]

Are they really expired, or soft expired? I'd research the drug to see how stable it is. If syringes are sigificantly cheaper, I'd use those with perhaps one or two pens if they're expected to be used by people without experience.

I've wondered this too, but it seems silly to test it in a life or death situation, and I suspect they're very aware of this.

It'd be really shitty if they're fine for 10 years and they mark them 1 year or something though.

 

[lxskllr]

I'm okay with like, 3 month old expired medication, but after a few years....

Some stuff will last a lifetime, other things are bad within a couple weeks. Compare the manufacture date with the expire date. I'd add 50% to it without a thought. More than that, I'd do some reasearch.

 

[Ns1]

I think it was $30 for a 2 pack through our insurance.

I gotta pay 100% until I hit the deductible or whatever

 

[Jeff7]

Huh, I never knew Epi-pen was actually a brand name.

But by and large, there is no mechanism to control what drugmakers want to charge for their products.

"Free market solves everything!"
The market isn't really free though when the buyer needs your product so that they don't die.

What's a fair price? I don't know, how much (dollars or will to live) have you got?

 

[cliftonite]

I think it was $30 for a 2 pack through our insurance.

http://imgur.com/yKiTcwH

 

[Ns1]

http://imgur.com/yKiTcwH

damn you and your cheap co-pay!!!!

 

[preCRT]

Holy crap re the price increase! I'm ever more grateful for my health insurance coverage now, my copay is a miraculous sub $5 for a twin pack of Epi-pens.

Seems a generic won't be on the market here for at least another year.
http://www.thepharmaletter.com/article/teva-suffers-setback-over-epipen-generic

 

[cliftonite]

damn you and your cheap co-pay!!!!

Yeah we have amazing benefits. I think our prescription copy is $30 for a 30 day supply. Health insurance deductibles are $500. ~240 per month total for the 2 of us (dental, vision, prescription).

 

[preCRT]

https://www.pharmacychecker.com

 

[Carson Dyle]

https://www.pharmacychecker.com

https://www.pharmacychecker.com/brand/price-comparison/epi+pen+auto+injector/0.3+mg/

 

[Ferzerp]

If syringes are sigificantly cheaper, I'd use those with perhaps one or two pens if they're expected to be used by people without experience.

Good luck carrying a syringe, a vial of epinephrine, and being able to accurately measure and inject yourself in a panic situation. This is a really, really bad suggestion. The reason pens are what you get are that they work through clothes, are easy, and only require gross motor skills. You pull the top off, and jab it into your thigh and hold it there for a bit (no worries about holding it too long).

 

[lxskllr]

Good luck carrying a syringe, a vial of epinephrine, and being able to accurately measure and inject yourself in a panic situation. This is a really, really bad suggestion. The reason pens are what you get are that they work through clothes, are easy, and only require gross motor skills. You pull the top off, and jab it into your thigh and hold it there for a bit (no worries about holding it too long).

I wouldn't have a problem with it. YMMV...

 

[Red Squirrel]

This is what is wrong with a for profit medical system.

It's not as bad here in Canada, but the TPP is going to fuck us over. US companies will be able to sue if companies here make a similar medication too cheap and will be forced to charge more. Heck, that already happens with Nafta.

 

[Matthiasa]

You should contact whoever prescribed it since they regularly have significantly discounted offers.

 

[Eug]

Hmmm... I didn't realize the Americans were being shafted so badly for epi-pens. They've remained reasonably priced here in Canada from what I gather (as confirmed by those posted articles).

Mind you I don't follow this closely since I have no reason to carry an epi-pen around. Luckily, so far it's looking good for our young kids too. No peanut or seafood allergy.