Trending News Today: Pharma Stocks Tumble During Trump Press Conference

CVS Health will sell a generic version of an EpiPen competitor for a lower price, according to USA Today. Last year, Mylan was widely criticized for dramatically increasing the cost for the EpiPen from about $100 to more than $600. In a statement, CVS said it would sell the generic version of Impax Laboratories’ Adrenaclick treatment for $109 per 2-pack before potential discounts, or approximately one-third, of the $300 list price of Mylan’s new generic EpiPen, USA Today reported. Beginning Thursday, Adrenaclick will be sold at all CVS Pharmacy locations. CVS will continue to sell EpiPen for customers who want the assurance of the brand name product, according to USA Today. However, Mylan has said the generic version is identical to the brand-name product.

President-elect Donald Trump said pharma companies are “getting away with murder” in charging the government high prices for medicines, and has promised that this will change once he takes office. According to The New York Times, drug stocks started to slide after Trump made his remarks at the news conference, causing alarm among investors. The S&P 500 index slipped into negative territory, and the iShares Nasdaq Biotech ETF dropped 4% at its session low, ending down 3%; its largest daily percentage drop in 3 months, the Times reported. “When the president-elect says we’re going to negotiate drug pricing, you have to take that seriously, but at the same this is a complicated issue because there’s not going to be clarity on drug pricing reform anytime soon,” Brad Loncar, manager of Loncar Cancer Immunotherapy ETF told The Times. “When somebody that high-profile says something that negative, people do not want to invest in it.”

Even if Trump successfully repeals the Affordable Care Act, New Yorkers could still get free birth control under a proposed state bill. According to The Wall Street Journal, the bill, proposed Wednesday by Democratic Attorney General Eric Schneiderman, would guarantee copay free coverage, free vasectomies, and access to a year’s worth of contraception at once.