DENVER (KDVR) — A bill that would cap the cost of an expensive and lifesaving medication passed its first big hurdle Friday afternoon by unanimously passing the House Health and Insurance Committee.

The proposed bill caps the cost of a two-pack of EpiPen at $60. In 2007, a two-pack of EpiPen cost less than a hundred dollars. Now the average cost for a two-pack is $690 for name-brand and $400 to $500 for generic.

“What we’re trying to do is make lifesaving medication like the EpiPen affordable,” said state Rep. Javier Mabrey, one of the bill’s sponsors.

$60 cap EpiPen in Colorado proposed

Mabrey said the money saved will apply to all Coloradans.

“$60 for people who have insurance, there’s one mechanism that’s part one of the bill, and $60 for people who don’t have insurance. There’s two different mechanisms for doing it, but that’s the cost Coloradans will pay,” Mabrey said.

The Pugh family knows firsthand the expense that comes with the life-saving medication.

“We’ve been buying injectors for 14 years for my son and 10 years for my daughter, amounting to about $15,000,” Keri Pugh said. “That’s significant to saving for retirement, maybe paying down college loan debt, catching up on credit card bills, putting food on the table.”

According to the bill, more than 500,000 Coloradans have a severe food allergy. It now moves on to the House of Appropriations.