Perhaps we can start with outlawing the advertising of prescription drugs on tv.

I watch morning news on U.S stations and I can't believe how many ads there are for prescription drugs. They are all the same, with soft music playing and after introducing the drugs, the next half of the commercial is a long list of potential side effects.

"Take this medicine for the clear skin you always wanted. Tests show that 70% of people who use it show some signs of less acne. Possible side effects include liver damage, burning of skin, high blood pressure and potential long term damage to your kidneys" but the soft music and happy people with clear skin continue smiling with the music playing...

Please make it stop.

How does this change anything I said? "Highly implausible" is not "We know for sure"

I was trying to be polite. What I meant was, it's absurd to say that there's any reason for the price increase other than profiteering.



In essence this is proof that the 500% increase was NOT due to markup...just sayin' :-)


Slap yourself.

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"People think it must be fun to be a super genius, but they don't realize how hard it is to put up with all the idiots in the world."

What I meant was, it's absurd to say that there's any reason for the price increase other than profiteering.

That may or may not be the case. One could assume that this is the case, but again, we simply don't know. I have seen huge increases in various products we bought due to cost increases of a single component that went into it. I have no idea if this is or is not the case with Epi-pen. I suspect that a good portion of the increase is profit, again however I have no idea.

In essence this is proof that the 500% increase was NOT due to markup...just sayin' :-)

Slap yourself.

Just pointing out the difference between markup and sales price. If the company is paying out 5X as much in wages the cost of their product goes up and the price would as well without markup going up at all. If the CEO is getting paid 9X as much that is being added to the product cost, not markup.

~Matt

I think in this case, it might be safe to say that we know.


http://www.nbcnews.com/...pipen-prices-n636591

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Slowguy

(insert pithy phrase here...)

I think in this case, it might be safe to say that we know.

I would agree that we have a really good idea and that as vitus said it's highly probable. Not sure we absolutely know until we see their books, profit margins on the epi, how much that contributes to total profits, cost of product, labor etc etc etc...which is why insurance companies don't give a crap about markup but only care about price.

Truly discovering markup is WAY more work difficult then "Nope, that's to expensive". Bad thing here is that typically when "That's to expensive" you can go to another provider. In this case and in many drug cases it seems we go to great lengths to protect manufactures and give them monopolies.

You'll not convince me that no one else knows how to make a drug and delivery system that has been around for 30+ years.

~Matt

Dan, you're expecting the government to fix the very problem it created... How very liberal of you.

The only mistake Martin made was not donating to Hillary.

This latest controversy affects many more people and was brought to us by none other than the Democratic Party.

https://www.yahoo.com/...d-big-201400242.html

To add insult to injury, they used an inversion to avoid taxes - oops.

Nothing like some good old fashioned cronyism between father senator and non-deserving daughter CEO. Almost like the way Michelle Obama got her big raise when Barak became senator in Illinois and started pumping tax payer funds into the business.

"Dan, you're expecting the government to fix the very problem it created... How very liberal of you."

i like my food, my rivers, my drinking water, my air, clean. i like my streets safe. i like my country safe from invasion. i like the idea of interstate highways. i like making sure that our children are not exploited. i like it that a floor is set for the minimum age for labor, and for workplace safety. i like that our country maintains relationships with other countries. in fact, i like that i live in an actual country. i like 1 person 1 vote. i like the ability to designate someone who can speak on my behalf, and can advocate for me. none of which is possible without government.

how very liberal of me.

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Dan Empfield
aka Slowman

You veered far off topic.

The issue you posted was made possible by the same government you now want to "solve" the problem.

This problem would not exist if it were not for the democrats legislating that schools buy the stupid product to begin with.

How about allowing a competitor in the door. Nothing keeps prices in check like competition... Not more price fixing laws and arbitrary punishment.

There's a reason companies do not develop drugs for niche markets... Because government regulations have pushed the costs so high they cannot afford to create the drug.

There's a reason why 1 part of the country suffers without electricity while generators sit on shelves in other parts collecting dust - stupid laws that tell me I will go to jail if I take the risk and effort to buy the generators, rent a truck and expedite them to the area in need.

Stupid laws like the ones you are in favor of spreading never help and always increase the suffering of the victim.

The problem is that there is no market rate for this product. The extremely stringent patent and protective legislation that BigPharma convinced congress to enact ensure that it's not capitalist market forces like competition and supply/demand that dictate price but greed vs. public outcry.

The same EpiPens that cost $600/unit in the US cost $90/unit in Canada (prices in USD). In Canada they are sold by Pfizer who licenses the injectable epinephrine from Mylan (the patent owner).
Since I'm sure Pfizer is making a margin on their $90 sale, and Mylan would have not awarded the license unless it was profitable, I am 100% sure that Mylan can sell these in the USA at below $90/unit and still make a 10% to 25% net margin.

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Remember - It's important to be comfortable in your own skin... because it turns out society frowns on wearing other people's

And the fact that the company CEO is the daughter of a US Senator, who just happens to be a D...or could it be that this company has made a large donation to the Clinton Foundation and partners with them on certain projects...

Things that make you go hmmmm?

Oh come on, Hillary came out on Twitter calling Mylan out for price gouging (wink wink). Once again lots of smoke... but you know Hillary; no fire.

Nothing will get solved as long as enough Congressmen are in Big Pharma's pocket. In this world there are scams, and then there are the pharmaceutical and insurance industries.

That statement is patently false and often used by Pharma to whitewash their social responsibilities.

Laws, processes and costs involved to meet FDA guidelines are proven, reasonable and make up only a fraction of the cost to bring a drug to market.

Just look at the fiasco in Europe (France), with their recently failed and fatal trials.

Sure, pharma tries to outsource basic R&D to governmental funded entities (NIH), but that only goes so far.

Niche market drugs do not get developed because they are no creating enough potential profit to justify investment. Plain and simple.

It's not lack of manufacturing expertise that is a barrier to entry, although drug/device combo's tend to have relatively high COGS. I believe Teva filed an ANDA (would bring a generic into the market) that was rejected by FDA. Not sure why and haven't gone back to look at any press releases or analyst reports. The core issue is the lack of transparency on "real" cost to the payors (other than the cash purchaser). Medicaid price increases are controlled and prices are calculated off the lowest price, dating back to launch. So state govt isn't paying $600/pen. Insurers are certainly not actually paying $600/pen. They've negotiated discounts or rebates that could range from 20-50%. We have no idea. Doesn't mean that what Mylan has done is "right."

Very important point, my wife is in charge of maintaining the regs and certs for a large medical manufacturing company, absolutely insane how much money FDA approval requires. Between the actual costs of approval combined with 7-8 audits a year, employee training, and constantly changing to meet new requirements they joke that mainting their certifications in 90% of the battle.

Here's your alternative. Looks like a generic version is coming out in the next few weeks. I can't believe some other producer was able to get approval for a generic that quickly.....wait, you mean they didn't,,,,,then who is making this generic? What???? Mylan is making their own generic and selling it at half the cost...WTH. Identical product and half the cost. Go figure.