Shots Not Fired

It’s a sign of our over-protective and over-litigious times that my doctor now makes me pack an EpiPen®, an epinephrine injector that will open up the airways in the improbable circumstance that I go into anaphylactic shock. For years I have been taking immunotherapy injections for hay fever, and I wait in the office for 20 minutes to ensure that I don't experience a severe allergic reaction.

Twice in 15 years I've had severe itchiness and swelling after a shot, which manifested within 5 minutes of receiving the injection. In both instances the nurse immediately administered epinephrine that reversed the symptoms. The EpiPen I must now carry is to guard against a delayed reaction that has never happened before. Another medical expense ($50 is my co-pay portion), and another device to schlep around.

I asked if I could carry around a spare EpiPen that was ordered for another member of our family. No, we can't do that, and so our medical bills climb. © 2009 Stephen Yuen

Injectors expire after 18 months and must be returned to the doctor for disposal (sharp needles and medication).