Stabenow, Peters’ legislation would cap price of insulin at $35

MID-MICHIGAN, Mich. (WNEM) - U.S. Senators Debbie Stabenow and Gary Peters introduced new legislation to lower the cost of insulin and save patients money.

The Affordable Insulin Now Act would require insurers to cap patient out-of-pocket costs for insulin at $35 per month for private health plans, traditional Medicare and Medicare Advantage. At current insulin costs, people with diabetes could pay more than $2,300 per month for insulin.

“Too many folks have to make critical choices every day— paying for their life-saving medication, buying groceries, or paying their heating bill,” Stabenow said. “For people with diabetes, these choices can be deadly. Capping out-of-pocket costs for insulin at $35 per month will save lives and help people in Michigan breathe easier. It’s time to pass this legislation as soon as possible.”

“Nobody should be forced to choose between putting food on the table and paying their bills or affording medications such as insulin,” Peters said. “I am proud to support this bill that will cap the cost of insulin—and I’ll continue fighting to lower prescription drug costs across the board for families in our state and across the country.”

For commercial plans, the cap applies to one of each dosage of each different type of insulin. For Medicare plans, this applies to all covered insulin products and copays are capped at $35 for all preferred and non-preferred products included on plan formularies.