WASHINGTON, September 12, 2016 – Sen. Chuck Grassley has asked the Iowa attorney general to review whether Iowa taxpayers have overpaid
for EpiPens under Medicaid.
It appears Minnesota taxpayers may have
overpaid for EpiPens by more than $4 million in a single year because the
product might have been misclassified under a rebate program. Grassley is
concerned about whether Iowans also overpaid.
“If Minnesota has been potentially overcharged to the tune of
$4 million, so too could Iowa. And if that is the case, the people of Iowa
ought to be reimbursed for the overcharge,” Grassley wrote to Iowa Attorney
General Tom Miller. “It goes without question that the people of Iowa
work very hard for their money, which is why I have committed to intense
oversight of not just the federal government and its spending habits, but
oversight of private companies that profit handsomely off federal and state
government programs supported by Iowans’ taxpayer dollars. …
“Iowans are rightly concerned about the high price of EpiPens.
Accordingly, I urge you to review whether the state of Iowa and the people of
Iowa have been overcharged by the potential misclassification of Mylan’s EpiPen
as a generic drug. Please advise on what steps you are taking, or intend to
take, on whether Iowa was overcharged, and if so, by how much.”
Grassley said it also would be helpful to know how much the
state of Iowa has spent on EpiPens in the past five years. Grassley said
he would appreciate a response by Sept. 20.
Grassley said that under the Medicaid drug rebate program,
branded drugs and authorized generic drugs carry a higher rebate than generic
drugs. If Mylan’s EpiPen was classified as a generic drug, the company
would have paid the lower rebate, perhaps incorrectly, causing states to pay
more. Grassley is interested in whether an incorrect classification involving
EpiPens has bearing for other companies and drugs in the rebate program and if
so, whether adequate oversight of the program exists.
“This information will be helpful as Congress works to understand
whether the generic drug classification system is working as intended and
whether drug companies and the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services are
fulfilling their responsibilities under the program,” Grassley wrote.
Grassley wrote that the Minnesota attorney general opened an
inquiry into the EpiPen pricing and the effects on the people of Minnesota,
including through the school system.
Grassley then led a letter from five senators to the Food and Drug Administration, seeking details on whether alternatives to the EpiPen are in the works. He also was one of three senators who asked the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services regarding the effects of the price increases on public health care programs.
The company has since announced expanded patient assistance programs and a generic version of the product.
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