Mylan’s Generic EpiPen Expected To Generate Millions In Revenue, Protect Against Competition
After the pricing controversy surrounding the high cost of EpiPens, Mylan is releasing its generic version onto the market. The savings it will create for consumers is up in the air, but the benefit for the company is clear.
The Associated Press:
After Harsh Light, A Cheaper Version Of EpiPen From Mylan
Mylan is releasing a generic version of its emergency allergy treatment EpiPen at half the price of the branded option, the cost of which drew scorn from parents nationwide and spawned Congressional inquiries. The potential cost savings will depend in part on a patient's insurance coverage and qualifications for discount and assistance programs that the drugmaker also provides. (12/16)
In other national health care news —
The Associated Press:
Trump Action On Health Care Could Cost Planned Parenthood
One of President-elect Donald Trump's first, and defining, acts next year could come on Republican legislation to cut off taxpayer money from Planned Parenthood. Trump sent mixed signals during the campaign about the 100-year-old organization, which provides birth control, abortions and various women's health services. He said "millions of women are helped by Planned Parenthood," but he also endorsed efforts to defund it. (12/19)
The Associated Press:
Medicare Outpatients Risk Higher Bills For Some Procedures
You pay less for outpatient treatment than for a hospital admission, right? Not necessarily in the topsy-turvy world of Medicare billing, according to a government report. People entitled to benefits under Medicare who had heart stents inserted as outpatients faced hospital bills that were $645 higher on average than those who had the same kind of procedure as inpatients, the Health and Human Services inspector general has found. (Alonso-Zaldivar, 12/19)
Stat:
NIH's Francis Collins On Obama, Congress, And His One Regret
At what was supposed to be the end of his tenure atop the National Institutes of Health, Dr. Francis Collins is still a very busy man. In his seven and a half years leading the agency, Collins has been involved in the response to Ebola and Zika. He has helped secure the first funding increases for the NIH in decades. Congress just this month funneled billions of dollars into several major projects — the Precision Medicine Initiative, the cancer moonshot — that Collins helped craft. This was supposed to be the finale for Collins. But, as he told STAT in a recent interview in his offices here, he loves the NIH and believes in public service, so if asked he would consider it a “privilege” to remain director under President-elect Donald Trump. (Kaplan and Scott, 12/16)
The New York Times:
Medical And Health News That Stuck With Us In 2016
As the year ends, the Science desk at The New York Times asked its reporters to look back at the news they reported on that was the most memorable. These are the selections, with a focus on health and medicine news. (12/16)