Society to continue pressing for insulin affordability measures for people with private insurance.
The Endocrine Society is elated about President Joe Biden signing into law the Inflation Reduction Act, which includes meaningful measures to make insulin more affordable.
The legislation has been a long-term goal of the Society and is a monumental moment in the history of diabetes advocacy.
The legislation caps insulin’s out-of-pocket costs at $35 a month for people with Medicare, which will make insulin more affordable for the millions of people enrolled in the program. The Society has advocated for years for meaningful action to reduce insulin prices.
“It’s wonderful to see our years of advocacy work pay off with this long-awaited insulin affordability bill. This pivotal legislation will help our patients who have Medicare and struggle to afford their insulin,” says Endocrine Society President Ursula B. Kaiser, MD. “We also recognize there is more work to be done, and we will continue to advocate for solutions to reduce out-of-pocket expenses for all people with diabetes.”
The Inflation Reduction Act included several additional provisions that will benefit the patients our members treat. We supported extending subsidies for the Affordable Care Act and giving Medicare the ability to negotiate the price of certain high-cost prescription medications.
More than 7 million people nationwide rely on insulin to manage their diabetes and live. According to the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, 37.3 million people nationwide have diabetes — 11% of the country’s population.
While insulin was discovered more than 100 years ago, the price of insulin nearly tripled between 2002 and 2013, and the trend upward has continued over the past decade. This has created an unnecessary crisis in health care with many people with diabetes being forced to choose between insulin and other necessities. High prices have forced some individuals with diabetes to ration their medication and become sicker, and, in some cases, even die.
We are pleased the Inflation Reduction Act includes provisions to lower the price of insulin and a cap on out-of-pocket insulin costs for people with Medicare. We also are hopeful that the House and Senate will revisit including the $35 per month cap on out-of-pocket insulin costs for individuals with private insurance. This would greatly help children and adults with type 1 diabetes.
We will continue to work with policymakers to ensure all people with diabetes who rely on insulin can benefit from lower out-of-pocket costs.
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