Milan allies kill cheaper competition with false claims

Good ol’ Milan Pharmaceuticals, always looking out for the health of West Virginians.

When Auvi-Q, the talking auto-injector that was the Siri of the food allergy world, came along instructing parents and patients how to handle the life-saving injection, Milan Big Pharma sued to prevent the competition.

Miraculously, 26 reports of the device not working surfaced. Not one was verified. But it shut down the Auvi-Q production and Milan lined its pockets with zillions of dollars and put thousands of lives at increased risk.

When the West Virginia Department of Health and Human Resources tried to switch to the cheaper (of course) Auvi-Q instead of the Epi-Pen that paid CEO Heath Bresch $19 million in 2015, Milan sued to block the change. But lost.

West Virginia Medicare, West Virginia Public Employees’ Insurance Agency and the Children’s Health Insurance Program all switched to Auvi-Q. Seven months later, using the false claims of malfunctions of Auvi-Q, the method was recalled.

Voila! Milan was back gouging the taxpayers with its Epi-Pens.

If another company did that, do you think West Virginia’s Senator Joe Manchin would be silent? Let me put it another way: If Joe’s daughter wasn’t the Milan CEO, do you think Joe would be making political hay by attacking Milan?

Other members of Congress are investigating whether Mylan violated antitrust law. Except for Joe Manchin, of course.

Milan spent $1.2 million to lobby for its Epi-Pens with politicians. That was money well spent since Milan raised the Epi-Pens’ price from $56.64 to $317.82, which would be equivalent to you getting a pay raise ALMOST SIX TIMES your current salary. All at the expense of the health of children and adults who need the life-saving device the most.

Mylan spokesperson resigns over EpiPens scandal

Mylan Pharmaceuticals spokesperson Robyn O’Brien, single mother of five, has resigned over CEO Heather Bresch’s outrageous super price increase of the life-saving EpiPens.

Her statement:

Robyn O'Brien

As many of you know, I have been a spokeswoman for Mylan for the past two years. I took on the role because I thought I could make a difference. There are few things I care more about than speaking your truth and owning it. Sometimes this has gotten me into trouble, but at the end of the day, truth, kindness and accountability is all that matters. Here is the resignation letter I sent to Mylan executives. I hope they do the right thing:

“As I previously mentioned in an email earlier this week, I must address the serious accusations Mylan is facing in the news. I have kept silent about my position until this email to you now, because I wanted to gather my own data and weigh against my responsibility to advocate as a spokeswoman for Mylan Speciality. However, my primary responsibility is to the food allergy community. Since the day I started my blog many years ago, my sole focus was to be a voice, their voice, and to educate and advocate for my food allergic son, and children like him all over the country. Given the recent allegations over Mylan’s price gouging of EpiPens and unbalanced executive level compensation, I simply cannot align my name with yours on this, and am deeply disappointed in the lack of transparency, especially to your consumers. Saying nothing is irresponsible and unacceptable. Truth in this matter and taking corrective measures is the only solution. And the millions of people who are affected by this deserve a solution immediately.

My responsibility is to educate the food allergy community and advocate for them. I have battled for years (and often with much opposition) with school districts over the issue of providing our kids who have life-threatening medical disabilities, the same rights and access to healthcare, safety guidelines and a “free and appropriate education“ under the ADA umbrella. Access and affordability to epinephrine auto injectors is not optional for our FA children. IT’S CRITICAL. It is the ONLY device that will save our children’s lives in the event of an anaphylactic emergency. As an advocate I tell parents to have an action plan and at least two epinephrine auto injectors on them at all times, because it only takes mere minutes for death to occur without it. Yet, thousands of children across our country WILL be forced to go to school, camps, and even in the safety of their own homes WITHOUT epinephrine. Why? Because they cannot afford it. Even with a $100 co-pay coupon from Mylan.

I am a single mother of five children who, thank God, can afford this medication for my son. However, there are countless other single parents or married parents who will need to choose not filling their prescriptions because it will cost them $300, $600 or even $900. If their monthly income is $800 a month, what can they do? Nothing. And that is what they will do. Nothing. Because they have no other choice. And soon enough, a child’s life will be lost. An innocent child just like my 14-year-old son. And for what? Money? I can’t accept or comprehend this line of thinking. And neither can the tight-knit food allergy community. I am a mother above all else. I will fight like hell for my children’s safety and well-being. The food allergy community is my family. And like my own children, I will fight for them just as hard. I ask that Mylan step up and do the right thing—answer the tough questions, slash the cost, adjust executive level pay and apologize to food allergy parents everywhere for putting their children’s lives at risk by these irresponsible behaviors.

I resign from my position as a spokeswoman for Mylan Speciality effectively immediately.

Apparently Robyn O’Brien is offended by this more than Heather Bresch’s father, Senator Joe Manchin from West Virginia, who issued a standard Mylan is studying the situation response. Would Joe do the same if the Big Pharma price-gouger was not run by his daughter?

Robyn said that Heather purchased $20 million of Mylan stock just before she jacked up the prices of various drugs, thereby making even more than the $16.5 million pay raise she had her board give her.

Nice, huh?

Manchin’s daughter creating another uproar

Heather Manchin Bresch is upping her game.

Senator John Manchin’s daughter, CEO of Mylan Pharmaceuticals, was given a master’s degree in 2008 that she didn’t earn from WVU because the university faked courses and grades to make it happen to please then-Governor Manchin.

Heather Manchin Bresch

WVU president Mike Garrison and three others resigned because it happened on their watch and the master’s degree was rescinded after public outrage hit the fan.

Heather attended WVU in 1998 but did not earn enough credits.

Later, Mylan CEO Heather purchased Abbott Laboratories' non-U.S. generic pharmaceuticals division for $5.3 billion, moved Abbott’s generic business to a new company headquartered in the Netherlands on paper and Mylan became a “foreign” company, an inversion tactic that cut Mylan’s tax rate in half in five years, leaving U.S. taxpayers to make up the difference.

Well, Heather has been busy, this time creating a national outrage.

She acquired the patent for the EpiPen in 2007, when the lifesaving device cost $56.64. By the time that Mylan controlled 85% of the EpiPen market, Heather jacked up the price to $317.82 – a 461% increase – and gave herself a 671% pay raise, from $2.4 million in 2007 to $18.9 million in 2015.

All this for a device that injects $1 worth of drugs into the thigh to combat a variety of allergies.

Up to 40% of children have allergies, which means they may be subjected to Heather’s pay-or-die policy. Up to 15 million Americans have food allergies.

Remember, most parents follow doctor’s orders to have at least two EpiPens in case one doesn't do the job. If they do, it would cost $635.64.

The drug in EpiPen Auto‑Injector is epinephrine. It constricts blood vessels to increase blood pressure, relaxes smooth muscles in the lungs to reduce wheezing and improve breathing, stimulates the heart (increases heart rate) and works to reduce hives and swelling that may occur around the face and lips.

The U.S. military developed epinephrine to combat nerve agents used in chemical warfare. Commercially, it combats anaphylaxis.

Ironically, every person that enters Mountaineer Field’s north entrance to watch WVU play football sees a sign that says:

“Milan Puskar Stadium.”

 The late Mike Puskar donated $13 million to get his name on Mountaineer Field.

But football is a game. The Epi-Pen involves a struggle to stay alive.

For a price.

Don’t just take my word for it. Click on  http://www.huffingtonpost.com/entry/a-call-for-mylan-ceo-heather-bresch-to-reduce-epipen_us_57bddc84e4b06384eb3de642 and read a demand that Heather reduce the EpiPen price and resign rather than force my families to choose between food and the death of their child.

Senator Manchin's response: No comment.

Hmnnn. If another company were doing this, I wonder if Joe would have no comment.

One solution: Buy Epi-Pens in Canada for $107 to $218. You'll save enough money to pay for the trip, and Canada is a fun place to visit.

 

Sticker-shock prescriptions

The widening income gap also decides who can get prescription drugs, by default. Anyone can get them . . . if they can afford the co-pay.

That’s no problem for Warren Buffett. But for others, it’s not that easy.

For example, Stelara for a disabling form of psoriasis, is $1,578 for each of four injections, or $6,312 for a year’s shots. For starters. Later, the patient’s cost soared to $2,728 per inoculation.

Soliris, which treats life-threatening blood diseases, costs $440,000 a year. For Warren Buffett, pocket change. For the rest of us, unaffordable.

Sovaldi, the best drug for hepatitis C, costs $84,000 for the recommended 12-week treatment. Warren Buffett, we aren’t. Even with co-pays, that can run $16,000.

All these are labeled specialty drugs, which are expected to cost Americans and their insurers $400 BILLION by 2020.

10 top-selling specialty drugs:

1. Humira, for inflammatory conditions.

2. Enbrel, for inflammatory conditions.

3. Copazone, for multiple schleroris (MS).

4. Atripia, for HIV treatments.

5. Revlimid, for cancer.

6. Gleevec, for cancer.

7. Enoxaparin, for blood clotting.

8. Rebif, for MS.

9. Avonex, for MS.

10.          Gilenya, for MS.

The article is in the January-February 2015 issue of the AARP Bulletin.

Read it and weep.