In the first day of this month, California Governor Gavin Newsom announced that the state will produce its own insulin in an effort to combat rising prices. He said in a July 7 video posted on Twitter. “People shouldn’t go into debt to get life-saving drugs.”
There are more 30 million Americans have diabetes, and about 8 million of them use insulin, a hormone, to regulate blood sugar. Uninsured Americans or those with high-deductible health plans can pay hundreds of dollars a month for insulin. In one Research in 2019About a quarter of users said they had to skip doses or use less than prescribed because of the cost.
Under Newsom’s plan, California would manufacture insulins similar to existing branded versions — called biosimilars. State officials have not yet set an exact cost target, but Alex Stack, deputy communications director for the governor’s office, said patients can expect to pay between 47 and 95 percent less than they should. they are currently doing. (The amount of savings will depend on a person’s insurance status.) “If we can do it, there’s no reason other people can’t and still make money,” Stack said.
The plan will spend 100 million dollars in the state’s $308 billion budget for this effort. Initially, California will spend $50 million to buy insulin from a manufacturing partner to get the product to market as quickly as possible. Stack expects that to happen as early as 2024. Eventually, the state will spend an additional $50 million to build a California-based manufacturing facility that will create what Newsom calls a “supply chain.” stronger response”. While the state has yet to find out the details of distribution, Stack says the insulin it makes will be available to anyone in the US, not just California residents.
California’s effort isn’t the only one to reduce insulin costs. Civica, a nonprofit pharmaceutical company based in Utah, announced in March that they will produce and distribute their own low-cost insulin. The company plans to make biosimilar versions of three insulins used daily in the United States — Lantus, Humalog, and Novolog — in both vials and pens. Civica is building a $140 million facility in Virginia where it will manufacture insulin, along with other drugs.
Civica intends to cap its price at $30 for a vial and $55 for a box of five pens. (How long this can last for a person depends on factors like weight, diet, and whether they have type 1 or type 2 diabetes.) Allan Coukell, Senior Vice President of Policy Civica said.
Coukell said Civica will make insulin widely available to drug stores across the United States, including those online. “We will make it available at any pharmacy that wants to buy it and adhere to our pricing policy, which is not to mark too much before reaching the patient,” Coukell said.
