WASHINGTON – Sanofi is the third drug company to cut the price of insulin to US$35 (RM157.50), following competitors Eli Lilly and Novo Nordisk in heeding pressure from the Biden administration.
Sanofi’s Lantus insulin injection will see its price cut by 78%, the company announced today, with the out-of-pocket cost for all patients being US$35. It is also slashing the price of its short-acting insulin injection Apidra by 70%, according to United Press International.
Sanofi, along with Eli Lilly and Novo Nordisk, produce 90% of the world’s insulin supply, according to USA Today.
“Sanofi believes no one should struggle to pay for their insulin, and we are proud of our continued actions to improve access and affordability for millions of patients for many years,” Olivier Bogillot, Sanofi’s head of US general medicines, said in a statement.
“We launched our unbranded biologic for Lantus at 60% less than the Lantus list price in June 2022 but, despite this pioneering low-price approach, the health system was unable to take advantage of it due to its inherent structural challenges.
“We are pleased to see others join our efforts to help patients as we now accelerate the transformation of the US insulin market. Our decision to cut the list price of our lead insulin needs to be coupled with broader change to the overall system to actually drive savings for patients at the pharmacy counter,” Bogillot continued.
The wave of price cuts to insulin by the three biggest producers follows the implementation of the Inflation Reduction Act which caps insulin costs at US$35 for people with Medicare.
Since announcing the act, President Joe Biden has continued to pressure drug companies to bring down their prices.
Senator Bernie Sanders and representative Cori Bush introduced a bill last week to take Biden’s plan even further, limiting the cost of insulin to US$20 per vial.
“There is no reason why Americans should pay the highest prices in the world for insulin – in some cases, 10 times as much as people in other countries,” it reported Sanders as saying in a statement. – Bernama, March 17, 2023
