U.S. government aims to drastically lower insulin prices for people with Medicare

Today the Center for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) revealed a plan to limit out-of-pocket insulin costs for people enrolled in Medicare.

The life-saving medication has steadily risen in price, resulting in complaints from diabetics, caregivers and the general public. However, under this new program — called the Part D Senior Savings Model — insulin’s out-of-pocket cost would be lowered to $35 per month for many Medicare-enrolled diabetics.

Currently, a third of Medicare beneficiaries has diabetes; about 3.3 million beneficiaries use one or more common forms of insulin.

A plan to lower insulin prices

According to Reuters, The Center for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) is lining up private insurers and drug makers to volunteer to test out the new pricing come 2021.

Though beneficiaries usually shoulder all or a percentage of the cost of their medicines, this proposed program would enforce a flat monthly copayment rate of $35 for most kinds of insulin.

In an interview, CMS Administrator Seema Verma said that if the insulin price-drop is successful, the Trump administration hopes to expand its initiative to other types of drugs. According to Verma, about 1.2 million Medicare beneficiaries could benefit if they enroll in plans offering these copays.

You can learn more about the Part D Senior Savings Model here.