Last month, House Energy and Commerce Committee leaders sent letters to the executives at Eli Lilly, Sanofi, and Novo Nordisk expressing their concern over the “unacceptably high” insulin prices. The committee first inquired about the topic in 2019. Now, they want to know what actions these companies have taken since then in an effort to decrease the cost.
Insulin Prices 10 Times Higher in U.S.
According to the letters, written by committee chair Frank Pallone (D-NJ) and subcommittee chair Diana DeGette (D-CO), the price of insulin in the United States is more than 10 times that of 33 other countries. The leaders are pushing to decrease the cost of the diabetes treatment — a particularly important endeavor considering that these three companies control 99 percent of the world’s insulin supply.
Specifically, Pallone and DeGette shared that many of the 34 million American diabetes patients are without the option of insulin due to its price. “We are committed to increasing access to affordable medicines and fighting the rising cost of insulin,” the Democratic leaders wrote. “Given your company’s representations in 2019 that this is a shared concern, we are interested in learning what has been done to alleviate this issue since that time.”
Specific Requests of Committee Leaders
The Committee leaders requested more information from Eli Lilly, Sanofi, and Novo Nordisk by September 17th. They asked for an explanation of any list or net price increases as well as the gross revenue and net profit by product and year. Additionally, they want a description of the steps the companies have taken to improve accessibility and decrease cost. Lastly, they asked for an explanation of the effect of the COVID-19 pandemic on any products.
Also, in the note to Sanofi CEO Paul Hudson, lawmakers reference a 2021 pricing report from the drug manufacturer, which states that the average out-of-pocket costs for insulin users have increased 82 percent since 2012.
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Additional Reading:
Novo Nordisk Recalls Samples of Insulin Medication for Diabetes