Photo: Rich Pedroncelli / AP
At the same time the price of the EpiPen has soared, so have reports of malfunctions, according to a Bloomberg News analysis of data from the Food and Drug Administration.
Why it matters: "This is a lifesaving product," Diana Zuckerman, president of the National Center for Health Research, told Bloomberg. "If it fails 105 times, that's significant."
The details:
- The FDA has received 228 reports of EpiPen failures so far this year — up from 105 last year, up from just four in 2012.
- Of those 228 reported failures this year, 35 people were hospitalized and seven were tied to patients' deaths, according to Bloomberg.
- The product's design changed in 2009. Mylan, the company that sells the EpiPen, told Bloomberg those changes were important for patient safety. They also extended Mylan's patent protections.
Correction: This post has been updated in the last paragraph to clarify that the EpiPen redesign was in 2009.