EpiPen maker Mylan hasn't gone far enough to reduce the sky-high price of the lifesaving drug device — despite steps announced Thursday to cut its cost, GOP Sen. Chuck Grassley charged.
In a statement, Grassley said an initial step to slash the $608 price of the epinephrine injector by providing a savings card worth up to $300 is short of actually reducing the drug's sticker price, only applies to some people — and could still leave programs like Medicare and Medicaid paying the top price.
"The announcement today doesn't appear to change the product price," Grassley said. "The price is what Medicare, Medicaid and insurance companies pay. It's what patients who don't get assistance cards pay. And when drug companies offer patient assistance cards, it's usually not clear how many patients benefit."
Grassley was among the senators writing a letter Monday asking Mylan to explain its steep price hikes; EpiPen injectors cost $100 in 2008.
Maryland Democratic Rep. Elijah Cummings was even harsher in his rebuke of the Mylan announcement Thursday, calling it a "PR move," The Hill reports.
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