Epinephrine is a medicine used to treat severe allergic reactions, which may be life-threatening. Analphylactic shock is an allergic reaction which can cause death within minutes. People with allergies to certain substances, such as wasp venom, are supposed to carry an epinephrine pen with them whenever they are in environments in which they might be exposed to the substance. These pens enable you to administer an emergency dose of the drug to counteract the allergen, after which you're supposed to get to an emergency room as quickly as possible. The pens come with an expiration date, so if you haven't used them in a year, you have to throw the pen away and get a new one. That's not so unusual with medicines and medical devices.
A few years ago, I had a severe allergic response to two wasp stings within a couple weeks, and as a result, I have been getting allergy shots to desensitize me to the venom, and I'm supposed to carry an epinephrine pen with me when I might be exposed to wasps (like being outside anywhere).
Having to carry an epinephrine pen around is bad enough, but I recently discovered that these pens (sold under the name Epipen) are made by one company (Dey Pharma) which apparently has found an effective way to pad their bottom line at consumer expense. Sometime in the past 6 months or so, the company decided to only package these pens in two packs (at twice the cost, of course). So now, patients who need to carry an Epipen have to buy a two-pack, both of which have the same expiration date. If all goes well and I avoid any wasp stings, I have to throw away two Epipens, not just one. Since I try to avoid sharing space with wasps, the odds of me having two severe allergic reactions within the next year are extremely slim.
The packaging/marketing of these devices by Dey Pharma results in waste of both consumer and health insurance resources. I don't know if the FDA has the authority or even considers trying to halt horrible marketing decisions like this, but it would be nice if the Federal government and/or the insurance industry could do something productive. I resent being forced to waste limited resources on guaranteed waste.
This strikes me as an excellent example of what's wrong with our "free market" approach to health care and why we need a good single-payer insurance system (which could conceivably control skyrocketing costs).
A few years ago, I had a severe allergic response to two wasp stings within a couple weeks, and as a result, I have been getting allergy shots to desensitize me to the venom, and I'm supposed to carry an epinephrine pen with me when I might be exposed to wasps (like being outside anywhere).
Having to carry an epinephrine pen around is bad enough, but I recently discovered that these pens (sold under the name Epipen) are made by one company (Dey Pharma) which apparently has found an effective way to pad their bottom line at consumer expense. Sometime in the past 6 months or so, the company decided to only package these pens in two packs (at twice the cost, of course). So now, patients who need to carry an Epipen have to buy a two-pack, both of which have the same expiration date. If all goes well and I avoid any wasp stings, I have to throw away two Epipens, not just one. Since I try to avoid sharing space with wasps, the odds of me having two severe allergic reactions within the next year are extremely slim.
The packaging/marketing of these devices by Dey Pharma results in waste of both consumer and health insurance resources. I don't know if the FDA has the authority or even considers trying to halt horrible marketing decisions like this, but it would be nice if the Federal government and/or the insurance industry could do something productive. I resent being forced to waste limited resources on guaranteed waste.
This strikes me as an excellent example of what's wrong with our "free market" approach to health care and why we need a good single-payer insurance system (which could conceivably control skyrocketing costs).
If you know someone who needs an Epipen, I'd be happy to sell him/her one of mine.
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