U.S. Insulin Prices To Be Slashed By Novo Nordisk By 75% Following Eli Lilly's Move

After years of public outcry over the heavy price of diabetes care, Novo Nordisk on Tuesday announced intentions to lower the price of various insulin medications by up to 75% in the U.S. The company is the latest pharmaceutical company to implement significant price reductions.

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One of the largest producers of insulin in the world, Novo Nordisk, announced in a press release that it will reduce the retail value of its NovoLog insulin by 75% and the price for Levemir and Novolin by 65%. The new prices will take effect on January 1st, 2024. These will cover both injectable pens and vials of insulin.

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Five injection pens from NovoLog will cost $139.71 instead of $558.83 on the list price scale. The cost of a vial will drop to $72.34

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The business added that it intended to drop the list prices of its non branded insulin solutions to coincide with the price reductions made to each individual brand of branded insulin.

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Steve Albers, the senior vice president of access to the market and public affairs at Novo Nordisk, stated in the statement, "We have been working to build a sustainable route forward that combines patient economics, market realities, and emerging legislative developments. "Novo Nordisk is still committed to making sure that diabetic individuals can afford our insulins; this is a responsibility we take seriously," the company said.

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The price reductions "have been in planning for many years, but due to heightened shareholder demand, we expedited to disclose now," a Novo Nordisk spokeswoman added to Trade Algo.

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Trade Algo was the first to report on Novo Nordisk's efforts.

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Two weeks prior, pharmaceutical company Eli Lilly announced it will reduce the cost of its most often prescribed insulin by 70% and increase a $35 monthly ceiling on customers' out-of-pocket expenses beginning in the fourth quarter. Almost 90% of the worldwide insulin market is controlled by Novo Nordisk, Lilly, and Sanofi.

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Also, the action follows years of legislative pressure on insulin producers to lower the cost of the life-saving drug for diabetics. The Inflation Reduction Act limited the cost of monthly insulin for Medicare members at $35 per prescription, but it did not fully safeguard people with diabetes who have private insurance.

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Earlier this month, independent senator from Vermont Bernie Sanders, who serves as the head of the Senate Committee on Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions, presented legislation capping the retail value of insulin at $20 per vial.

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Several People have been compelled to restrict insulin or use it less due to high prices. According to a study published in the Annals of Internal Medicine, roughly 1 in 5 American individuals will either skip, delay, or use less insulin in 2021 in order to save money.

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According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, diabetes affects over 37 million Americans, or 11.3% of the total population.

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