Friday, October 28, 2016

We Can't Forget the EpiPen Issue

Hearing repeatedly about price increases for life-saving medications or procedures can be exhausting – the emotional taxation of realizing that people are at higher risk of death due to capitalism may feel like quite the burden to undertake. And yet, conversation about the cost of EpiPens cannot and should not cease until accessibility to the medication is improved. News about the hiked prices for EpiPens has slowed to a trickle, but the problem still remains, and has bigger impact than we first realized.

Today an article was released which highlighted the overall cost of the gradual increase to the U.S. Department of Defense. In the last year, the Pentagon spent $57 million – over six times the amount it spent in 2008. The raised cost is also impacting other health programs provided by the government, such as Medicare and Medicaid. It’s true that other prescription drug prices have increased as well over the years (such as Sovaldi, a cure for hepatitis C, and Daraprim, an AIDS and cancer treatment), but since 2009 the average price for the EpiPen has increased to the point where families are resorting to filling syringes with epinephrine, rather than buying the expensive allergy response injectors. Amie Vialet De Montbel, a mother from Troy, Virginia, is one of many parents who has had to switch to this practice in the case of her twelve-year-old son. EpiPens, for those without severe allergies or who haven’t had any reason to look up what they are, aren’t a luxury that suburban soccer moms use as accessories for their kids who get a rash if they inhale pollen. These auto-injectors are life-saving emergency response medications for people with life-threatening allergies.



Many people who will go into anaphylactic shock if they come into contact with their allergens are now unable to purchase EpiPens, and unaware of safer alternatives. Anaphylactic shock can be as severe as swelling of the tongue and breathing tubes, dizziness, and immediate drop in blood pressure, and can result in something as serious as death if not treated quickly. Mylan, the manufacturing company of EpiPens, has released an “EpiPen Savings Card” to assist with the copay of the drug, not everyone is covered under the company’s terms and eligibility requirements. Additionally, the offer on the card only covers a maximum of $300 per two-pack.


All of this information has been parroted to the public over and over again for the past month, largely because of the outrage sparked by the price’s increase, and out of desperation for change. And yet, news about the EpiPen has become sparsely discussed in most public media. In order to help promote change, people have been spreading information about an alternative to the EpiPen, Adrenaclick, which is more affordable than the EpiPen and provides the same function. We have reached a point however where more drastic change must be heavily advocated for – people can’t let the topic leave the spotlight until EpiPens are made affordable again.

No comments:

Post a Comment