Friday, October 26th, 2018
Stephan: This story was sent to me by a friend who is an internationally respected physician and author with this message, "I think the insulin rip-off is the clearest example of pharma-greed. Insulin is not optional; without it, people die. Simple as that. That means a captive user group -- and an opening for limitless greed. Insulin should be dirt cheap. This article actually suggests solutions." That pretty much says it.
Credit: Illustration: Sarah Grillo/Axios
The big picture: Insulin pricing is especially urgent because it’s an old drug with no alternatives that millions of people depend on. But unless drug makers voluntarily lower their prices, after raising them for years, there’s no easy path to make insulin more affordable.
By the numbers: Eli Lilly, Novo Nordisk and Sanofi control almost the entire insulin market. Together, those companies had about $22 billion in global insulin revenue in 2017.
These are the per-vial list prices for common insulin brands, according to Elsevier’s Gold Standard Drug Database:
- Novo Nordisk’s Novolog: $289
- Eli Lilly’s Humalog: $275
- Sanofi’s Lantus: $270
- Walmart sells an older type of insulin for $25 a vial, but many patients don’t want to switch treatments.
Between the lines: Most patients don’t pay the full list price for insulin, but people who are uninsured or have a high-deductible insurance plan do.
Why it matters: “It’s really one of my greatest fears,” said Clayton McCook, […]
