Senator Urges FTC, Senate Judiciary Committee to Probe Mylan Price Hikes for Epipen

Sen. Amy Klobuchar is urging the FTC to open an investigation into Mylan Pharmaceuticals’ pricing of the emergency allergy treatment Epipen.

The Minnesota Democrat is asking the FTC to probe the company’s sales of the epinephrine auto-injector, which saw a 400 percent price increase, to determine whether Mylan violated antitrust laws and incentivized contracts with insurers, distributors or pharmacies.

In a letter to the FTC released Monday, the senator compares the price of the drug in 2008, when a two-pack of Epipens cost $100, to the therapy’s current price of $500. The 400-percent increase outpaces “stable manufacturing costs,” she said.