EpiPen Prices and Food Allergies

     Without insurance, EpiPen prices range from $650-$750 for a pack of brand name auto injectors, however the cost of generic epinephrine is incredibly inexpensive. Even with some high deductible insurance plans, EpiPens are not always covered. For a lifesaving medication, this is an incredibly steep cost and there should be no barriers to people accessing this medication. As someone who (very unfortunately) is allergic to nuts, I have experienced first hand how these high prices effect families even coming from a very fortunate position on my parent's health insurance. EpiPens also expire yearly, so the high cost is something that has to be paid frequently.

    Personally, I have had a number of (not great) experiences with the US health system and my own food allergy. As I mentioned, since EpiPens are so expensive, I am not very inclined to get them refilled as frequently as I should. In March of 2020, I accidentally ingested a nut forcing me to use my EpiPen for the first time. However, since I had not gotten them refilled due to the cost, they were all expired and I had to go to the ER after using the EpiPen. While I haven't had extremely negative experiences with the US health system coming from a place of privilege, it goes to show that there are many barriers affecting access to health care that can effect anyone whether they be bigger or smaller issues. 

    

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Rural Healthcare Access

Various barriers to healthcare access impact rural communities such as lack of public transportation combined with increased distances to health services, lack of cell service and internet access, and fewer healthcare providers compared to urban environments. Due to lower population density in rural regions, healthcare centers are often located in centralized areas. This can result in lengthy travel times required for doctors’ visits. In addition, these areas do not typically have consistent or reliable public transportation. These factors can lead to patients choosing to go for longer periods without seeking medical attention or only going in the case of emergencies. Over the past few years, especially since the start of COVID-19, telehealth services have grown in use and quality. Unfortunately, there are still large areas of the country that do not have access to cell service and/or internet connection. While telehealth seems like it could be a solution to the lack of transportation ...
Read more

These Kids Are Too Expensive

As someone who's interested in women's health and fascinated by labor and delivery, I have a lot of mom and baby-related recommended posts on my social media feeds. More recently, I've been coming across Instagram posts where American mothers share their outrageous hospital bills after having a baby and compare the costs to countries with universal healthcare. Even the television series The Office touches on this, with Pam trying to "hold in" her baby girl till midnight because her health insurance only covers a two night stay at the hospital. In 2022, the average cost for having a baby in America was $18,865 (without insurance). If you are having a cesarian section, you can expect to pay closer to $26,000. These prices are exorbitant compared to somewhere like the Netherlands, for instance, where in 2017 it cost an average of $3,600 to have a baby via standard delivery. For those in the US who have health insurance, costs are greatly reduced, but with roughly 26 ...
Read more

What even is insurance?

  What even is insurance? As a young child still under the age of 26, I still have a lot to learn. I was even told I needed to ask an adult before using the blog site. As a result, I still don’t know a ton about the inner workings of insurance or how to use it effectively. When I moved to Michigan for school, I put off finding new healthcare providers for quite awhile because the prospect of trying to find providers covered under my parents’ insurance seemed too daunting. It can be surprising to find out how much my doctor’s appointments are after each visit as well. To me, copays never seem consistent, and they don’t often make sense. I am certainly not looking forward to navigating choosing what insurance to go with when I get kicked off my parents’ insurance.               I’m still confused about many aspects of the US healthcare system, and I’m learning to be a part of it. We even had a class that taught us abo...
Read more