Two senators – one Republican and one Democrat – on Wednesday introduced a bill that would cap the cost of insulin for Americans, a life-saving drug whose cost has skyrocketed in recent years. 

What You Need To Know

  • Two senators on Wednesday introduced a bill that would cap the cost of insulin for Americans, a life-saving drug whose cost has skyrocketed in recent years 

  • The bill, introduced by Sen. Susan Collins, R-Maine, and Sen. Jeanne Shaheen, D-N.H., would cap the monthly cost of insulin for insured individuals at $35

  • The bill also attempts to incentivize drug makers to lower their prices by taking aim at the discounts and rebates given to pharmacy benefit managers and other middlemen

  • The price of analog insulin — used to help the body convert glucose into energy — has skyrocketed “inexplicably” over the past two decades, per the Mayo Clinic

The “Improving Needed Safeguards for Users of Lifesaving Insulin Now Act,’’ or the ‘‘INSULIN Act,” for short, was drafted by Sen. Susan Collins, R-Maine, and Sen. Jeanne Shaheen, D-N.H., and is the “result of months of good-faith negotiations and input from lawmakers, advocates and experts,” the lawmakers wrote in a statement. 

"Access to insulin can be the difference between life and death for many Americans living with diabetes,” the statement continued. “For far too long, patients have stretched their budgets, rationed insulin and made difficult personal decisions to keep this drug within reach for themselves or those they love.” 

The bill would cap the monthly, out-of-pocket cost of insulin at $35 – or 25% of the listed price – for individuals covered by Medicare or commercial insurance plans. It also attempts to incentivize drug makers to lower their prices by taking aim at the discounts and rebates given to pharmacy benefit managers and other middlemen, a move the senators hope will drive down the overall cost of insulin across the country. 

The legislation, should it pass, would take effect for those with coverage on Jan. 1, 2024, but would not cover those who are uninsured. 

The INSULIN Act is a more sweeping measure than one that passed the House of Representatives in March, which did not include the provision targeting pharmaceutical middlemen that some experts say drive up the cost of insulin and other prescription drugs. 

The House’s Affordable Insulin Now Act also only gained the support of 12 Republicans, an ominous sign for the Shaheen-Collins bill, which would need to gain the support of nine additional Senate GOP members in order to pass the chamber. Should it pass, House and Senate negotiators would likely meet in a conference committee to hash out differences in the two bills, before re-voting on a potential compromise bill and sending it to President Joe Biden’s desk for signature. 

Biden himself has been vocal about lowering the cost of insulin and other prescription drugs. Insulin typically costs ten times more in the United States than in any other developed country, according to the Mayo Clinic. With over 37 million Americans living with diabetes, it is now considered the most expensive chronic health condition in the United States, costing Americans more than $300 billion a year.

The price of analog insulin — used to help the body convert glucose into energy — has skyrocketed “inexplicably” over the past two decades, the clinic says, shooting up from an average price of $21 in 1999 to $332 in 2019. 

The formula of the most commonly used versions of the drug have not been changed in over 20 years. 

“Let's do something that will bring down prices, lower the cost of prescription drugs,” Biden said during an April address, later adding: “Imagine what it's like if you don't have insurance, you don't have the cash. Look at your child knowing what they need and knowing there’s not a damn thing you can do about it. Not only is your child put in jeopardy, you're deprived of your dignity.” 

Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer, D-N.Y., on Wednesday pledged to bring the INSULIN Act to the floor for a vote “very soon.” 

“They have written a very fine bill,” Schumer said of Shaheen and Collins on the Senate floor. “Now it's time for Congress to get the job done. If we can pass this bill, it will be a win for everyone.”

A similar – yet more narrowly-tailored – bill was introduced by an all-Democrat delegation in February, led by Sen. Raphael Warnock, who is in the midst of a heated reelection battle in Georgia. That legislation has languished in the Senate, without much Republican support. 

Warnock in early June wrote a letter to Schumer saying he was “deeply disappointed” that the leader did not bring his bill to the floor before Memorial Day, adding that he was “glad to see that you took procedural steps to bring insulin legislation to the Senate floor during the next work period.”

Warnock on Wednesday cheered the introduction of the Shaheen-Collins legislation, which includes and expands upon his proposed Affordable Insulin Now Act. 

“I commend my colleagues Senators Shaheen and Collins for their thoughtful work in crafting legislation that would cap costs for insulin, lower high insulin list prices, and has the potential to garner bipartisan support," a statement from Warnock read in part. "There is now strong momentum to break through the partisan gridlock in Washington and finally make some progress on this issue, so I’m going to keep pushing even harder for Senate leaders to prioritize taking action on the Senate floor to pass our insulin legislation."