Bipartisan legislation to cut skyrocketing cost of insulin & iLet Bionic Pancreas System granted Breakthrough Device Designation

Share D-News
,
1

Here are two articles I ran across today that I thought would be of interest:

  1. https://www.mytwintiers.com/news-cat/degette-reed-introduce-bipartisan-legislation-to-cut-skyrocketing-cost-of-insulin/

Summary of Legislation

The Insulin Price Reduction Act would, among other things:

  • Reduce the list price of most insulin products by more than 75%. The bill creates an incentive for drug makers to set the list price of their insulin products at, or below, the list price they were set at in 2006. A move that would lower the list prices for some of the most popular insulin products by more than 75%.
  • Require Medicare and all private insurers to cover insulin with no deductible. The bill requires Medicare and all private insurers to waive the deductible requirements for any insulin product that’s been reduced to its 2006 price.
  • Protect drug makers who reduce their prices from the pressure of having to offer any additional rebates. The bill would prohibit any drug maker that sets the price of their insulin products at, or below, its 2006 list price from offering any additional rebates to further lower the cost of that product for insurers. Lowering the list price of insulin benefits consumers. It also allows drug makers who reduce their insulin products to their 2006 prices to sell their products without having to offer additional rebates, giving them an incentive to do so.
  • Prohibit insurers from refusing to cover any insulin product that’s been priced at, or below, its 2006 list price. Under the current system, insurers may refuse to cover a drug that doesn’t come with a significant rebate to reduce the cost for them. This power to deny coverage of a company’s product has led many drug makers to increase the list price of their products in order to offer a larger rebate to insurers.DeGette’s bill would prohibit insurers from refusing to cover any insulin product that’s priced at, or below, its 2006 list price – thus taking away the leverage many insurers currently have to pressure drug makers into raising both their prices and the rebates they offer.
  1. https://www.endocrinologyadvisor.com/home/topics/diabetes/ilet-bionic-pancreas-system-gains-breakthrough-device-designation/
    This system can be configured to function as an insulin-only, glucagon-only, or a bihormonal bionic pancreas using insulin and glucagon.
3 Likes
2

Well it is nice to see something being done, I am not sure the Insulin Reduction Act will entice companies to follow it, but it is simple enough that it could work if it was passed into law. Hopefully this act gains enough momentum to make it through congress.