EpiPen Company to Offer Cheaper Version after Price-Gouging Accusations

Heather Bresch, Mylan CEO

The pharmaceutical company, Mylan, will start offering a generic version of its EpiPen that will cost about half the price of the brand-name version.

That comes after a pricing controversy led to scrutiny of the company, followed by questions about a surge in federal funds directed to Mylan.

The company has been criticized after the brand-name list price of the emergency allergy treatment increased dramatically to $608 for a two-pack.

Now Mylan says its new generic version of the device will be launched in several weeks. The product will be the same as the brand-name EpiPen, but with a two-pack list price of $300.

The company has faced accusations of price-gouging from consumers and politicians. The list price of a pair of EpiPens has gone up consistently from less than $100 in 2007 when Mylan acquired the product.

Mylan made the announcement about a generic version Monday, a few days after Imprimis Pharmaceuticals, a compounding pharmacy, said there's a possibility that in a few months, it could offer a version of the allergy treatment that would likely cost around $100 for a two-pack.

Mylan CEO Heather Bresch said the price hikes for EpiPen are justified because the company only took in $274 of the total price of a two-pack. She said insurers, pharmacies and other parties receive what's left.

Meanwhile, The Washington Free Beacon reports that after Bresch, who is the daughter of Sen. Joe Manchin, D-W.Va., became CEO, the amount of government funds directed to Mylan, Inc., increased considerably.

"The company experienced a sudden spike of government funds going to its subsidiaries after she took over as CEO in 2012," the online newspaper reported.

"Lara Ramsburg was listed as the main point of contact on Mylan's lobbyist disclosure forms throughout 2012, just before the spike in government funds to Mylan's subsidiaries," The Washington Free Beacon reported.

"Ramsburg served as policy director in the Office of the Governor of West Virginia in 2009," it continued. "Manchin, Bresch's father, was governor of the state during that period. Ramsburg was the campaign spokeswoman for Manchin's Senate campaign in 2010."

The Washington Free Beacon reported that Mylan did not return the newspaper's request for comment.