Davids Joins Kansas Parents, Health Professionals to Discuss Rising Insulin Costs

Statement

Today, Representative Sharice Davids hosted a roundtable with parents and health care professionals in the Third District to discuss the rising cost of insulin and her work to lower those costs for Kansans. Participants discussed how insulin costs affect them and their families, and how policies like the Davids-backed Affordable Insulin Now Act, which caps the cost of insulin at $35 a month, would benefit them.

"Insulin prices have continued to soar while drug companies rake in profits. Today we heard the very human consequence of that, as our neighbors and friends shared how difficult it is to keep up with rising costs of insulin," said Davids. "By capping their costs at $35 a month, we are not only relieving a major burden for these families and tens of thousands of others--we are saving lives."

At the roundtable, Davids was joined by Jessica Brown from Prairie Village, whose 14-year-old son, Garrett, has type 1 diabetes, and Heather Meyer from Overland Park, a type I diabetic herself. Jenifer Clausen, Pharmacy Director at Saint Luke's South Hospital, also joined the roundtable. Participants discussed why insulin prices are so much higher in the U.S. compared to other countries, and how those prices impact their daily lives.

Rep. Davids on a panel

Rep. Davids, Jessica Brown, Heather Meyer, and Jenifer Clausen discuss rising insulin costs

"As a parent with a child with Type I, we are lucky to have technology that helps us track his blood sugar levels…but with that comes a lot of expense," said Jessica Brown, Prairie Village resident. "Some families are paying thousands a month before they meet their deductible just for their two kids to have insulin. Capping that at $35 a month would take a huge stress off their family."

"Many times, I could not scrape together the $500-800 each month for the insulin I needed to survive. I drove to several hospitals and clinics, in search of anyone that could give me insulin to hold me over. I was still injecting blindly. I had no idea the long-term damage it would do to my health," said Heather Meyer, Overland Park resident and Kansas State Representative for the 29th District. "To know that Rep. Davids and the House have passed a $35 cap on the price of insulin gives me hope that we will finally get these costs under control and save lives."

"Insulin is a basic need for people diagnosed and living with diabetes. It is crucial to their overall health and livelihood that they are able to get the medication they need to help manage the disease, avoid hospitalization and other critical adverse health complications, and enjoy a full life," said Jenifer Clausen, PharmD, BCPS, Saint Luke's South Hospital Pharmacy Director. "Saint Luke's is committed to helping our patients live their best lives and appropriately manage chronic health conditions. Insulin is a life-saving tool for diabetic patients and having affordable access to insulin is essential to their ability to live healthy lives."

Davids' 2019 report on insulin prices found that in the Third District, there are 17,000 seniors and disabled Medicare beneficiaries with diabetes, and that those Kansans pay as much as 4.8 times as much for brand-name diabetes medication as patients in other countries. In total, Johnson and Wyandotte County residents on Medicare pay more than $16 million for their insulin annually.

Under the $35 a month maximum co-pay, the Affordable Insulin Now Act requires private individual and group plans to cover at least one of each dosage form (such as a vial or pen) and type (such as short acting, long acting, and premixed). For Medicare beneficiaries, the cost-sharing cap applies to whichever insulin products are covered under their plan for plan years 2023 and 2024, and then all insulin products would apply beginning in 2025. It passed the House on March 31 with bipartisan support.

Davids is a fierce advocate for making health care affordable and accessible to all Kansans. She has voted to create the first ever out-of-pocket cap on seniors' prescription drug costs and stop drug companies from raising prices faster than inflation. She has led her colleagues in pushing for Medicare to negotiate for lower prices on medications, a move that would lower costs for all Americans--not just those on Medicare. And she successfully passed a bipartisan law to protect patients from unexpected medical bills, which went into effect this year.

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