Society Now Working on Introduction in the House of Representatives
In a significant advocacy victory for the Endocrine Society, the Senate Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions (HELP) Committee passed the INSULIN Act, bipartisan legislation to make insulin more affordable introduced by Senators Jeanne Shaheen (D-NH), Susan Collins (R-ME), Raphael Warnock (D-GA), and John Kennedy (R-LA).
The Society worked on the development of and endorsed this important legislation. As a result of our advocacy, the bill continues to advance in the Senate in bipartisan fashion. The legislation passed the committee by a vote of 17-5 which included the support of six Republicans and 11 Democrats. The legislation would take historic steps to lower the out-of-pocket cost of insulin.
Specifically, the bill would expand the $35 insulin co-pay cap, currently available to Medicare beneficiaries, to people on private insurance. The legislation would also create a pilot program for 10 states to provide programs that help identify people living with diabetes who are uninsured and provide them with insulin at $35 a month.
We worked very closely with Senator Shaheen and Senator Collins, the co-chairs of the Senate Diabetes Caucus, to advance this legislation and we are grateful for their continued dedication and leadership. Leading up to the vote, the Society actively worked to secure the support of Senators on the HELP Committee and other Members of Congress.
The day before the committee markup, Endocrine Society member leader Alvin Powers, MD, an endocrinologist and diabetes researcher at Vanderbilt University, was on Capitol Hill meeting with congressional offices urging them to support the bill.
During August, the Society worked closely with Representative Diana DeGette (D-CO) who is a co-chair of the Congressional Diabetes Caucus in the House of Representatives to introduce the legislation in that chamber.
The Society also worked with Republican House members including Representative Mariannette Miller-Meeks (R-IA) to obtain additional co-sponsors. The plan is that the bill will be introduced in the House in September.
