HARTFORD - Lawmakers are demanding more information on why the price of lifesaving EpiPens has skyrocketed.
EpiPens are used to ward off potentially fatal allergic reactions, and the price has surged in recent years.
Wednesday, Senator Richard Blumenthal (D) said he wants federal investigators to look at the business practices of the product's manufacturer.
At a press conference at Connecticut Children's Medical Center, Blumenthal called for a probe by the Federal Trade Commission, as well as congressional hearings on what he labels as price gouging by Mylan.
Blumenthal is calling the jump in price from about $100 back in 2009, to today’s estimated $600 cost, price gouging.
He sent a letter to the maker of EpiPen, Mylan, demanding they stop the price surge.
“My office has been contacted by dozens of concerned Connecticut residents, families, school nurses, and first responders who urgently require your life-saving product but fear that its skyrocketing price has put it out of reach. Due to Mylan’s virtual monopoly of the epinephrine auto-injector market and its unique life-saving attribute, it is crucial that your product remains affordable. Therefore, I demand that Mylan take immediate action to lower the price of EpiPens for all who rely on this product for their health and safety,” the letter states.
In addition to calling on the company to lower the price of the auto injectors, Blumenthal is expected to call on the Senate Judiciary Committee and the Federal Trade Commission to launch an investigation into potential anti-trust violations and deceptive and illegal trade practices.
Iowa Sen. Charles Grassley wrote the company that manufactures the devices, and asked for more information on why the prices have increased. He cited the cost to parents when children must have them and to schools that keep EpiPens on hand. The school costs are passed on to taxpayers, he said.
New York Rep. Grace Meng on Tuesday asked the House Oversight and Government Reform Committee to hold a hearing. She is a co-chair of the Congressional Kids Safety Caucus.
Forbes reports that during the same timeframe that EpiPen prices went up 400 percent, the CEO's salary jumped 671 percent.
The CEO, Heather Bresch, happens to be the daughter of Sen. Joe Manchin, a West Virginia democrat.
"The issue here is the price gouging and predatory misconduct, not the identity of the CEO," Blumenthal said. He hasn't heard back from Mylan.
