On Thursday, December 12, Governor Kathy Hochul announced a major new piece of legislation that can save New Yorkers hundreds and even thousands of dollars a year.
The new bill tackles sky-high prices on life-saving devices head-on.
"MONEY IN YOUR POCKETS" the press release starts.
The highlight of the brand new law that Governor Hochul just signed is that health insurance companies are now required to cover "medically necessary EpiPen devices" for New Yorkers. But there's more to it than just that.
According to GoodRx, the average cost of an EpiPen pack is approximately $713 nationwide. The price can vary based on what pharmacy you go to, what brand you're choosing (which, there are few to pick from), and of course, insurance.
Governor Hochul's office writes that since EpiPens were acquired by Pharmaceutical giant Mylan in 2007, "the cost of Epi-Pen devices has far outpaced the rate of inflation, with some reports citing a 600% increase in price."
For context and to give some comparison in case 600% doesn't sound insane enough, if the price of a gallon of milk increased at that rate, one gallon of milk would currently cost $24.50.
Something to keep in mind about epi-pens is that one pack (for $713) only contains 2 doses of epinephrine. And even if you didn't need to use it consistently, which some people do need to do, epi-pens typically expire after 12 months. So people with severe allergies need to continuously drop hundreds of dollars to ensure they have access to this life-saving medication.
Aside from the fact that health insurance companies are now required to cover epi-pens, this new legislation also puts a cap on the cost that New Yorkers can be charged out-of-pocket.
Now thanks to this new legislation, no one can be required to pay more than $100 for epi-pens and caps.
The legislation is a huge win for thousands of New Yorkers who rely on these lifesaving pens.