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from the better-mousetrap-trapped-in-limbo dept.
AlterNet reports
The [EpiPen], which millions of Americans depend on, was invented in the 1970s by engineer Sheldon Kaplan[PDF], who died seven years ago in modest surroundings amid obscurity. But Kaplan's patent made its way into [the] Netherlands-based drug maker Mylan, which, since 2007, has jacked up the price of the spring-loaded injector from $57 a shot to $300.
[...] The high price [...] caught the attention of Dr. Douglas McMahon. The 38-year-old allergy specialist in St. Paul, Minnesota, has been thinking about how to improve on the EpiPen and to do so in a way that's affordable.
[...] McMahon saw that the EpiPen device was not only overpriced for what it does but also was too big to be easily carried in a pocket. For the past couple of years, he has been tinkering with injection-device components in his lab. And the result of his work is AllergyStop [1], an injection prototype that's small enough to fit on a key chain. McMahon claimed his device is as effective as the EpiPen and can be marketed and sold for about $50.
But, even though McMahon's device has been production-ready for the past two months, the steps he must take to get the device approved will cost him about $2 million and it will potentially take him years to go through all the hurdles required by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration for possible approval of his invention.
[1] All content is behind scripts. archive.li will run those for you.
Previously:
EpiPen's Price Increased 400% since 2008
(Score: 2, Informative) by fubari on Monday September 12 2016, @01:57PM
Picture of what it looks like here in an interview w/inventor, actually explains the device: a-conversation-with-the-doctor-who-invented-it/ [salon.com], and interesting read.
Summary: the new device is keyring size (see link for neat picture). Advantage: while epi-pens aren't huge, many people don't carry them on-person all the time). And no, not auto-inject but still plenty fast: pre-dosed, quick assembly, easy to administer. Seems like a good size/complexity trade off, might actually be more field-usable than epi-pens.
(Score: 2) by bob_super on Monday September 12 2016, @05:30PM
I've seen a few human beings before, and deducted that if something is so tiny that they don't have to think about it when carrying it, and designed for rare emergencies, I would not trust it to properly deliver a safe product by the time they need it.
The epipen being big might cost lives, but it also forces people to remember they are carrying life-saving IM medication, not just a toy.