[anaolykarpov]

The title could be rephrased as "Cheap guys risk the lives of thousands of people by promising savings of a few bucks".

The problem is not with the "greedy corporations", but with the poorly dedigned legislation regarding intellectual property rights.

The state created the protectionist environment in which companies can become bullies and be sure that they won't be exposed to any economic competition.

Of course, the complete lack of IP laws would deter companies from investing in research, but the same effect have too strong IP laws. Why would a company risk their money and do research once they found a cash cow which can be milked for a long time, having the state guarantee it?

[magicalist]

> The title could be rephrased as "Cheap guys risk the lives of thousands of people by promising savings of a few bucks". The problem is not with the "greedy corporations", but with the poorly dedigned legislation regarding intellectual property rights.

Ah, so let's all just stay in line until we fix patent law. That'll work out!

The problem here is some cheap guys risking the lives of thousands of people to make a few bucks. You say it was inevitable that a company would take advantage of this cash cow; I say it was inevitable someone was going to route around this cash cow.

I also feel like no one in this comment section has taken a first aid course before. Anyone who has spent time around some epipens would start questioning the price. The thing itself does not have to be a super precise device.

Meanwhile administering epinephrine is not a big deal. Really, any idiot can administer epinephrine, and probably do about as well as people do with epipens. I would personally recommend most people who need it keep a vial and some syringes around if they need to administer it to their kid, and an epipen only for the convenience of the form factor and only if they really need it. Most of the time you can get away with benadryl.

So, hack away, cheap guys. You'll likely help a few, help a few others discover they can get away with a super cheap vial, and demonstrate to quite a few more that the prices currently listed are ludicrous.

[SilkRoadie]

> The title could be rephrased as "Cheap guys risk the lives of thousands of people by promising savings of a few bucks".

You say "Cheap guys".. A growing number of people cannot afford an EpiPen. What are they supposed to do? Just die when they have a reaction?

I agree that this solution is not ideal and is probably prone to error or failure. For a lot of people who no longer have the means to purchase an EpiPen it looks like a solution that could save lives.

[bonoboTP]

> poorly dedigned legislation regarding intellectual property rights.

It's not poorly designed. It's designed very carefully and very well for the purposes of those who bought the legislation.

[justifier]

this comment seems wholly unwarranted

how do you think this effort puts thousands of people at risk?

if you download the instruction packet(o) it comes with a Links.txt file that has a link to an instructions video.. which at the time of writing this comment can be found at: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ldFFJRdhVs8 ; i suggest you watch it

all of the components are 'off the shelf' and the drugs are prescription

from this(i) ~random site epinephrine costs 74.95$ for 30mL, the instructions call for .3mL, that is 100 uses from this 75$ vial, or 75 cents of epineprhine per epipencil

when i read the article i thought this was a great effort that could save the lives of anyone who was unable to bare the new price of the epipen, but now i am wondering what from the epipen warrants the price tag? can a loved one even sue epipen if it malfunctions and kills the intended user?

(o) https://fourthievesvinegar.org/download/#epipencil

(i) http://www.buyemp.com/product/epinephrine-vial

[amelius]

> how do you think this effort puts thousands of people at risk?

IANAMD, but I suppose air bubbles in the injector could cause problems (?)

[probably_wrong]

As far as I understand: a regular bubble of air, while undesirable, won't kill you. That's part of what the lungs are for, and in fact it happens in hospitals all the time.

A very large bubble can kill you, but you need to put some serious effort [1].

[1] http://www.straightdope.com/columns/read/2866/can-air-inject...

[justifier]

sure, but concerns like that are why the epipen`cil came to be

in emergencies you are stressed and on a time constraint

if one takes the time to prepare for such an emergency by constructing the epipencil i would hope thae would follow the instructions given carefully, which notes:

7) Inspect carefully to make sure there are no air bubbles, and remove them if present.

i sent them an email requesting that they explicitly describe in the instructions and verbally describe in the video how to ensure the syringe is bubble free