WASHINGTON, D.C., USA — Congressman Tim Burchett announced Friday that he has asked the Subcommittee on Health of the Committee on Energy and Commerce to investigate the rising costs of insulin and other vital medications.
His letter to the committee chairwoman and ranking member reads as follows:
April 5, 2019
Chairwoman Anna Eshoo and Ranking Member Michael Burgess
The Committee on Energy and Commerce
Subcommittee on Health 2125 Rayburn House Office Building
Dear Chairwoman Eshoo and Ranking Member Burgess,
The high cost of prescription drugs places millions of Americans in difficult financial situations. The price of life-saving insulin increased nearly 20 percent each year between 2012 and 2016. That’s nearly double the price in just five years. What’s worse, the cost of insulin has tripled over the past decade, which is why I write to urge you and the subcommittee to investigate the spike in the price of this medication that was originally developed nearly a century ago.
Millions of Americans rely on insulin, and for many it is becoming cost prohibitive. This is also true of many other drugs that affect a large population with common diseases – including diabetes, high cholesterol and asthma – whose lives depend on medications that are readily available but inflated in price.
Access to life-saving medications is imperative and that is why it is so important to investigate these price increases. I respectfully urge you to begin this process, and I hope we can work together to address this issue.
Most respectfully,
Tim Burchett
Member of Congress
The cost of insulin for a person with Type 1 Diabetes nearly doubled in the span of five years, according to a new study.
The nonprofit Health Care Cost Institute found the annual cost for the typical patient went from $2,864 in 2012 to $5,705 in 2016. That's an increase of 99.2 percent.
According to Reuters, the numbers are the combined amounts paid by both the patient and their insurance. Rebates paid later were not included.
