> ## Content Index > Fetch the complete content index at: https://www.theamericanquorum.com/llms.txt > Use this file to discover other available public pages before exploring further. # EpiPen Price Tops $600 After Sixfold Rise, and Mylan Offers Coupons Instead of a Cut - URL: https://www.theamericanquorum.com/epipen-price-600-sixfold-rise-mylan-coupons/ - Published: 2016-08-28T03:59:00.000Z - Updated: 2016-08-28T03:59:00.000Z - Description: Mylan expands savings and assistance programs as families and lawmakers challenge the sixfold increase in EpiPen’s two-pack price. - Author: Kenneth R. Deans Jr. - Tags: Healthcare, #Import 2026-08-30 10:47 **The list price of a two-pack of EpiPen auto-injectors has climbed above $600—about six times its 2009 level—forcing families to confront the cost of keeping a life-saving emergency medicine at home, school and work.** Mylan, which acquired the product in 2007, responded Thursday to bipartisan criticism by increasing the value of a savings card to as much as $300 and expanding eligibility for a patient-assistance program. The measures may lower what some insured or low-income patients pay at the pharmacy, but they do not reduce the EpiPen’s list price. The distinction matters because insurers, employers and government programs still absorb the higher underlying cost, and patients with large deductibles or incomplete coverage may face much of it directly. [Reuters reported](https://www.reuters.com/article/us-mylan-nl-pricing-idUSKCN11017J/?ref=theamericanquorum.com) that Mylan’s action followed intense criticism from lawmakers and consumers over years of increases. ## A familiar device becomes a $600 necessity EpiPen delivers a measured dose of epinephrine during anaphylaxis, a severe allergic reaction that can close airways and cause a dangerous drop in blood pressure. The spring-loaded injector is designed for rapid use by patients, parents, teachers or caregivers before emergency treatment arrives. The product is generally sold in pairs because a second injection may be required and because patients often need devices in multiple locations. EpiPens also expire, creating a recurring expense even when they are never used. A family with more than one allergic child may need several two-packs each year. [Business Insider calculated](https://www.businessinsider.com/epipen-price-increases-about-500-percent-2016-8?ref=theamericanquorum.com) that the price had increased about 500 percent since 2009, when a two-pack cost roughly $100\. The medicine inside—epinephrine—is inexpensive and has long been available, so much of the product’s value lies in the reliable auto-injector, brand recognition, training and distribution. ## Competition exists on paper, but not enough at the pharmacy Mylan dominates the epinephrine auto-injector market. Sanofi recalled its Auvi-Q device last year over concerns that it might deliver an inaccurate dose, removing a significant branded competitor. A lower-priced injector from Adrenaclick exists, but it has less market penetration and requires different handling, complicating substitution and training. The Food and Drug Administration has not approved a directly substitutable generic EpiPen. That leaves patients and schools with limited practical alternatives and gives Mylan unusual pricing power over a product used in emergencies rather than selected through ordinary consumer comparison. Sen. Amy Klobuchar of Minnesota asked the Federal Trade Commission to examine whether Mylan’s market position and practices have inhibited competition. Sen. Chuck Grassley, Republican of Iowa, demanded detailed information about the company’s pricing analysis, advertising spending and assistance programs. His [August 22 inquiry](https://www.grassley.senate.gov/news/news-releases/grassley-seeks-information-epipen-cost-increase-product-manufacturer-after?ref=theamericanquorum.com) followed complaints from constituents facing high pharmacy bills. [STAT documented](https://www.statnews.com/pharmalot/2016/08/22/senator-wants-ftc-probe-mylan-epipen/?ref=theamericanquorum.com) calls from Klobuchar, Grassley and Sen. Richard Blumenthal for investigation and disclosure. The concern crosses party lines because the product is both medically essential and insulated from ordinary price competition. ## Coupons lower the counter price, not the system cost Mylan’s enhanced savings card can reduce out-of-pocket costs by up to $300 for some patients with commercial insurance. The company is also doubling the income ceiling for its assistance program to 400 percent of the federal poverty level, potentially providing free devices to more uninsured patients. Those changes will help eligible families immediately. But coupons can also obscure rather than solve the underlying price problem. An insurer may still pay a large claim, costs that later appear in premiums, while patients in government programs are generally barred from using manufacturer coupons. High list prices also affect schools and emergency providers maintaining stocks. [Time reported](https://time.com/4465869/mylan-epipen-prices/?ref=theamericanquorum.com) that the $300 discount could cut the pharmacy bill in half for some people, while noting that the company framed the affordability problem partly as a consequence of rising deductibles and insurance premiums. Chief Executive Heather Bresch said patients deserved greater transparency and affordable care. That explanation has not satisfied critics, who argue that insurance design does not account for the magnitude of the manufacturer’s increases. Democratic presidential nominee Hillary Clinton called on Mylan to lower the price immediately, according to [her statement and contemporaneous coverage](https://time.com/4465125/hillary-clinton-mylan-epipen-price/?ref=theamericanquorum.com). She joined lawmakers from both parties demanding an explanation for the product’s rise. ## A broader test of drug-pricing accountability The EpiPen controversy arrives amid growing anger about U.S. pharmaceutical prices, particularly for older medicines whose costs rise without a comparable therapeutic advance. Unlike a daily drug, an auto-injector may sit unused until it expires, making the annual replacement bill especially visible to families. Mylan argues that it has invested in improving the device, expanding awareness of anaphylaxis and distributing free EpiPens to schools. Federal legislation encouraging schools to stock epinephrine has increased access to treatment but also expanded demand for the dominant product. The company’s public standing has deteriorated quickly. Actress Sarah Jessica Parker, who participated in an allergy-awareness campaign because her son has a severe peanut allergy, ended her relationship with Mylan and called the pricing unaffordable, as [reported Thursday](https://time.com/4466547/sarah-jessica-parker-mylan-sponsorship/?ref=theamericanquorum.com). The dispute has moved from pharmacy counters into presidential politics, celebrity advocacy and congressional oversight. Questions also surround executive compensation and the company’s financial gains from the franchise. [The Guardian reported Saturday](https://www.theguardian.com/business/2016/aug/27/mylan-ceo-sold-stock-epipen-price-hike-heather-bresch?ref=theamericanquorum.com) on stock sales by Bresch made under a prearranged trading plan while scrutiny of the product intensified, adding to pressure for fuller disclosure. The immediate policy choices are limited. Congress can demand records, regulators can examine competition and the FDA can continue reviewing alternatives, but none of those steps puts a lower-priced substitute on pharmacy shelves today. Families need devices now, before the next allergic reaction. Mylan’s assistance expansion acknowledges that the price has become difficult for many patients to bear. It does not answer the central question raised by a $600 two-pack: how a mature medicine, delivered through a well-established device, became six times more expensive in seven years. Until competition or a genuine list-price reduction arrives, EpiPen will remain both a medical safeguard and a symbol of a market in which the person who needs a product most urgently has the least power to refuse its price.