Apparently not content with a salary of $18 million per year, Mylan CEO Heather Bresch cashed in 100,000 shares of Mylan stock three weeks ago, to the tune of $5 million.
Bresch did so under a 10b5 plan, which spans a certain waiting period and are set up to avoid the appearance of insider trading, reports the Guardian. "Yet," as the Guardian writes, "Bresch did not need insider information to know that trouble lay ahead."
Mylan shares went from $49.20 per share on August 19, 10 days after Bresch's sale, to $43.11 on August 24—a $3 billion loss in value, notes Raw Story.
In addition to jacking up prices of EpiPen, Mylan has, according to Wells Fargo, also raised prices on seven other products by 100% and on 24 more by at least 20%. According to the bank's analysts, these actions invite "greater regulatory scrutiny."
As if all of these revelations weren't enough:
AMELIA COUNTY, Va. – A rural EMS agency will forgo carrying EpiPens on board due to skyrocketing costs of the live-saving drug. If a patient is going into severe anaphylaxis, then only thing that will save them is epinephrine.
“We are no longer able to carry EpiPens on any of our ambulances or quick response vehicles,” said Jay Rupkey, with the Amelia County EMS. “This is due to the exorbitant costs involved. As of today it cost $1,200 to carry the recommended dosage on each vehicle, that is two doses.”
Every ambulance in the Greater Richmond area carries a sealed drug box containing epinephrine, but not an EpiPen, that all Advanced Life Support (ALS) personnel have free access to use.
All Basic Life Support (BLS) units are only allowed to give three drugs: oxygen, the patient's own nitroglycerin or assist with the patient's own EpiPen -- or they may use an EpiPen that is on the ambulance.
This is especially disturbing because although urban EMS units are widely staffed with ALS personnel, rural EMS units are not - they have mostly BLS staff, and they're not allowed access to the sealed box containing epinephrine and syringes. In the case of rural Amelia County, the cost to stock their four ambulances and single quick response unit now runs to at least $6,000 for EpiPens - and possibly more; the County EMS simply can't afford them.
It seems likely that we'll begin to see a lot more of these issues in rural areas around the country, although according to CBS news, Teva Pharmaceuticals is developing a generic alternative that they hope to have available next year. Likewise, Mylan claims that they'll offer a generic version as well.
