The Insulin Price will soon be dropping across America, which will help millions who rely on the medication. In fact, some beneficiaries are already seeing the savings. President Joe Biden’s Inflation Reduction Act caps the insulin price at $35 for medicare recipients. Eli Lilly, a major manufacturer of the drug, is reducing costs by 70%. The President says “Once one major carrier or one major operator changes it, it changes everything. So I think we’ve made a lot of progress.”

Insulin Price Savings

However, the insulin price cap does not extend to Americans with private insurance. Biden hopes Congress will extend the cap for everyone. A Department of Health and Human Services reports the price drop will save more than 1.5 million seniors an average of $500 per year.

The Biden-Harris Administration is committed to lowering health care costs and increasing access to high-quality, affordable health care, and the Inflation Reduction Act is helping us do just that.”

Xavier Becerra – HHS Secretary

HHS Secretary Xavier Becerra also says “people who get their insulin through Medicare won’t have to pay more than $35 for a month’s supply. No one should have to skip or ration their insulin because they can’t afford it.”

In 2019, about 37 percent of insulin prescriptions for people with Medicare required cost-sharing exceeded $35 per fill, including 24 percent that exceeded $70 per fill. In addition to savings, the HHS report also provides demographic characteristics, including gender, race and ethnicity, and age. The states with the most people with Medicare projected to benefit from the new Inflation Reduction Act insulin price savings are Texas with 114,000 beneficiaries followed by California, Florida, North Dakota, Iowa, and South Dakota. Click here to see the full breakdown of information by state.

In a recent #TuesdayTip Navigate Corporate Trainer, Vickie Bell, answers questions regarding Medicare Premiums for 2023, as well as cost-of-living adjustments. Again, the Insulin Price drop went into effect on January 1, 2023 for Medicare Part D recipients. Medicare Part B recipients will see the drop beginning July 1, 2023.