Horrifying details in the NY Times.  Also consider that the same EpiPen product that is priced at over $300 in the U.S. is sold for $77 ($100 CDN) in Canada. This is the benefit of a single-payer, non-profiteering, medical system. Whatever – the U.S. federal edifice is a cesspool of corruption and self-dealing, and no sense wasting time gnashing our teeth over it as it just keeps getting worse. I’m more concerned about how to have a solid antidote for anaphylactic shock without an EpiPen.

The good news is that anaphylactic shock from insect stings can be headed off without recourse to profiteering scum:

1) Plant – chew up some plantain (it’s probably growing in your yard or on the sidewalk) and apply as a poultice – it acts quickly to minimize swelling at the bite site and stops the spread of the allergic reaction.

2) This sounds weird but it works – have someone insult you and make you fighting mad. The adrenalin you generate will counter the allergic reaction and could save you a trip to the hospital.

Both have worked for me – plantain when I was stung five times working on the roof – and the anger thing was done to me by a smart EMT who really got my goat when I was stung at the county fair. I do still carry a (long-expired) epipen and an anakit. But I have never used them, despite several wasp and bee stings.

King County has replaced epipens in their EMT kits with an injectable dose of epinephren. Glad to see sensible, competent Washington public servants working for the people. Probably a solution best left to medical professionals, however.