Here is shareholder capitalism in action. Product prices up, through extensive lobbying. CEO pay up even more. Vulnerable consumer are the victims:
There are minor mitigating circumstances, although this might just be for PR reasons:
Quote:According to NBC, Heather Bresch, the CEO of Mylan, a pharmaceutical company that bought the rights to EpiPens in 2007, has raised the price of the pens, which are used in emergencies to treat severe allergic attacks, by 400 percent over the last eight years. (Bresch’s pay, in the meantime, has increased by 671 percent.)Meet the Martin Shkreli of allergies. | New Republic
That means that EpiPens, whichused to cost around $94, now sell for an average of $608. Bad news for kids withlife-threatening allergies! Members of Congress are demanding more explanation from Mylan on the price increases.
Perhaps even more insidious is the fact that Mylan spent millions on lobbying over the past decade. In decisions that directly benefited Mylan, the FDA in 2010 recommended that EpiPens be prescribed not only to patients with confirmed allergies, but also those who are at risk. The agency also recommended packaging two pens together as opposed to selling single doses.
Martin Shkreli, who is one of the most hated men in America, weighed in on the matter this morning, stating that the price was actually “quite a bargain,” especially if you consider the much higher costs of going to a hospital for anaphylactic shock.
There are minor mitigating circumstances, although this might just be for PR reasons:
Quote:Mylan has given away more than 700,000 free EpiPen’s to schools since 2012 under a program that allows them to receive four free auto-injectors, the company said in a statement. Yet schools have to use their own funds to purchase additional pens. Mylan declined to comment on the price increases coinciding with legislation to encourage EpiPen use.The Senator’s Daughter Who Raised Prices on the EpiPen - Bloomberg Politics