Diabetes Health in The News Podcast: Medicare Insulin Copayments to Be Reduced by 66%
Click on the arrow to listen to the podcast
Diabetes Health Staff
The federal government has taken a big first step at becoming involved in the growing nationwide controversy over soaring insulin prices. And it’s one that will have a significant impact on seniors with diabetes who rely on Medicare for their insulin prescriptions: As of January 2021, Medicare enrollees who have been paying $105 in copayments a month’s for insulin will now be asked to make a $35 copayment for their insulin prescription. That’s a 66-percent reduction in direct costs to the 3 million people on Medicare who need insulin.
Seniors with diabetes who are enrolled in Medicare will enjoy an average annual savings of $446 in insulin costs.
The White House, in adding details to its Part D Senior Saving Model that was first announced in March, says that as of late May the program has already attracted 88 health insurers representing 1,750 plans.
Three of the biggest insulin suppliers to U.S. consumers, Eli Lilly, Sanofi, and Novo Nordisk, have all agreed to increase the discounts they offer for their respective insulin brands.
This won’t be the last we hear about federal attempts to rein in insulin costs, which have increased 200 percent over the past 10 years. Congress has recently begun discussing the high price of insulins as well as various state legislatures.
