4
September 2016
NEWS
The Stentorian I NCSSM
National Parks Celebrate
100-Year Anniversary
By CLAIRE YIN
A hundred years ago,
Woodrow Wilson signed into
law an act that created the
National Parks Service. Since
then, over 400 parks and
park monuments have been
established across the U.S.
On the 100 year anniversary,
Aug. 25, there were a variety
of events planned. Over
1,000 visitors of the Human
Arrowhead Emblem gathered
on the National Mall and
Memorial Parks in Washington
with brown, green and white
umbrellas in order to bring
the arrowhead emblem of the
National Park Serv'ice to life.
Some individuals brought
cupcakes to the Juniper
Picnic Area at the Theodore
Roosevelt National Park and
shared the sweets with park
rangers. Similarly, the Florida
National Parks Association
held a National Parks Birthday
Party to highlight “This Land is
Your Land: A Second Century
for America’s National Parks.”
This exhibit showed images,
videos and artifacts from parks
in Florida.
At the Hawaii Volcanoes
National Park, they held a Na
Leo Manu Hawaiian Concert
Series, featuring Hawaiian
music and a hula troupe. An
impressionist of Gen. Ulysses
S. Grant appeared at the Gen.
Grant National Memorial in
New York City to relay his
work. Preserve historian Erik
The Hawaii Volcanoes National Park, above, was home a concert series celebrating the National Parks 'centennial.
J.D. GHIGGS/USOS
Johnson worked alongside the
Denali National Park in order
to track the path of famous
explorers and biologists on a
journey through the park.
The centennial of the
National Park Service was
indicative of more than just
the long existence of national
parks: it represents their
development and growth.
In the past century, much
growth has occurred within the
National Parks. Many of these
parks now offer art programs,
exhibitions, and projects as a
way to recreate the beauty of
the parks. With the beautiful
landscapes in parks, it is no
surprise that over 50 parks
house artists-in-residence
every year.
In addition to the expanded
art scenery, women and
minorities have received
increasing job opportunities
in these parks. In the past, the
parks reflected the prejudice
and suppressive society, as
mostly white men worked
as rangers or on park staff.
Now, these parks reflect the
progressiveness and increasing
diversity of America.
As research has supported
the dynamism of ecosystems
over the past century, parks
have been increasingly
habitable for various wildlife.
This is a large change from
the previously poorly managed
ecosystems, where animals
were under stricter conditions
and not allowed to evolve and
live freely and naturally.
However, the next century
may not hold the promise
of equivalent growth. At
Yellowstone National Park,
Service Director Jon Jarvis
says that political support for
the parks has decreased over
time.
This simply exacerbates
the fact that the park currently
faces about $12 billion backlog
of maintenance projects.
Underfunding requires for
more corporate donations and
philanthropy to be amended.
Monetary issues are just one
of the many challenges ahead.
As climate change continues
to increase atmospheric
temperature, scientists predict
that Glacier National Park will
have no glaciers. Additionally,
wildfires have been longer-and
hotter than before.
Many parks share these
environmental challenges,
making us wonder how the
next centennial celebration
will look.
EpiPen Price Increases Cause Outcry
By ISABELLA LI
A study by the Asthma
and Allergy Foundation of
America estimated that one
in 50 Americans suffers from
anaphylaxis, a life-threatening
allergic reaction. For many
of these Americans, the most
immediate hope for survival,
should they experience a
reaction, is a fast injection of
epinephrine from the FpiPen.
In 2007, the EpiPen cost
100 dollars for a pack of two.
In 2016, the same pack of two
cost 600 dollars — a 500%
increase. Industry insiders
estimated that the EpiPen
only costs about 30 dollars to
produce.
In 2007, pharmaceutical
company Mylan purchased
marketing and distribution
rights for the EpiPen
from Merck. Since then,
Mylan has used aggressive
marketing campaigns and
congressional lobbying efforts
to boost EpiPen sales, while
steadily increasing prices
for the product. Consumers
have limited options in
regards to other epinephrine
autoinjectors, with the
EpiPen’s closest competitor,
Auvi-Q, being discontinued
for inconsistent dosages last
October.
This outrage has sparked
congressional action,
spearheaded by Senate
Judiciary Chairman Chuck
Grassley. Mylan’s letter
response to Grassley’s
questioning did not answer
questions about how the
company determined its drug
prices. It did, however, offer
defense for the company’s
actions.
Mylan claimed that it had
invested over one billion
dollars to increase awareness
and preparedness about
anaphylaxis. Mylan also stated
that it believed that rather
than decreasing the price of
the EpiPen, offering a generic
version of the drug would
deliver more significant cost
savings to patients.
“By ensuring the generic is
priced well below the brand,
we will be able to help ensure
robust generic utilization
and savings for patients and
the healthcare system,” said
Mylan.
Generic drugs are copies of
brand-name drugs that offer the
same quality, dosage form, and
strength, but for a lower price.
Mylan claims that it plans to
release a generic version of
an epinephrine autoinjector at
300 dollars for a pack of two, a
50% discount over the current
price.
However, the FDA places
strict quality standards on the
production of generic drugs to
ensure that they are sufficient
replications of brand-name
versions. A generic epinephrine
autoinjector has yet to receive
approval.
Mylan’s EpiPen price
increase coincide with a rising
outrage towards drug prices
overall. The most notable
case of this involves Martin
Shkreli, former CEO of Turing
Pharmaceuticals. In 2015,
REAL FIRST AID. LTD.
EpiPen pricing has stirred controversy regarding drug costs.
Shkreli gained widespread
notoriety — and was called
“the most hated man in
America” — for increasing
the price of Daraprim, an
antiparistic drug, by over 5000
percent.
U.S. consumers pay more
for drugs than those in any
other country. Other national
governments use pre-existing
policies to negotiate with
pharmaceutical companies
for lower drug costs. The
U.S. government has no such
policy. In fact, U.S. law bans
Medicare, the country’s largest
prescription drug buyer, from
negofiating drug pricing at all.
Such legislation has been
criticized on the campaign
trait by both presidential
candidates. Donald Trump has
argued that Medicare should
have negotiating rights with
pharmaceutical companies.
And in response to the EpiPen
cost increases, Hillary Clinton
has set forth a plan that
threatens penalties if drug
makers impose unreasonable
price increases.
Ultimately, the EpiPen
price increases first and
foremost harm individuals and
families who are affected by
life-threatening anaphylaxis
reactions.