The out-of-pocket cost of insulin at $35 per month would be capped. (Photo: MarketWatch)
Eli Lilly announced Wednesday that the out-of-pocket cost of insulin at $35 per month would be capped. According to experts, the move may inspire other insulin manufacturers in the United States to follow suit.
The change, which Eli Lilly said goes into effect immediately, brings the drugmaker in line with a provision in the Inflation Reduction Act, which went into effect in January and imposed the cost of insulin at a $35 monthly cap on the out-of-pocket cost of insulin for Medicare beneficiaries.
President Joe Biden praised the move in a tweet and urged other drugmakers to lower insulin prices. Last month, Biden made insulin costs a focal point of his State of the Union speech.
The American Diabetes Association praised the decision and urged other insulin manufacturers to follow suit to cap their cost of insulin at $35.
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Insulin manufacturers have been under pressure from members of Congress and advocacy groups to reduce the price of the life-saving medication. Insulin prices in the United States are notoriously high compared to other countries; the Rand Corporation, a public policy think tank, estimated that the average list price for one vial of insulin in the United States in 2018 was $98.70.
People with private insurance are exempt from the cap. People who do not have insurance will be eligible if they sign up for Eli Lilly’s copay assistance program.
Because of the pandemic, that program began providing insulin to patients – regardless of insurance status – for no more than the cost of insulin at $35 in 2020.
According to Kelly Smith, a company spokesperson, the cap applies to all of Eli Lilly’s insulin products. In addition to the cost caps, the company will lower the list price of several of its products this year, including Humalog.
According to Ricks, the decision was made due to discussions between the company and Congress members about the medication’s cost.
According to him, the passage of the Inflation Reduction Act created a “split situation” in the United States, with seniors benefiting from the cost of insulin at $35 out-of-pocket monthly cap but people with private insurance and the uninsured not.
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