Bill to cap insulin insurance co-pays passes in Virginia

Bill to cap insulin insurance co-pays passes

A bill prohibiting insurance companies from charging more than a $30 co-pay for a 30-day supply of insulin passed.

On Tuesday, the Virginia House of Delegates voted for Delegate Lee Carter’s HB 66. Nearly a unanimous vote, the bill passed and now awaits approval by both the State Senate and Governor Ralph Northam.

Meanwhile, similar bills have recently passed in Illinois and Colorado; but, their co-pays cap at $100.

Insulin insurance co-pay background

The bill to cap insulin insurance co-pays comes as insurance prices have skyrocketed in the past couple of decades for more than millions of diabetic Americans who rely on it.  The astronomical prices of insulin have led some people to either ration or forgo taking the critical medication.

Insurance companies have argued that the drug’s limited manufacturers are to blame for artificially inflating prices. The major corporations- Sanofi, Eli Lilly, and Novo Nordisk- behind the world’s insulin market have virtually controlled the insulin supply since it was discovered nearly 100 years ago.

In 2019, Congress launched a bipartisan investigation into the insulin market at the federal level amid a comprehensive probe into drug pricing.