{"id":1481,"date":"2020-02-25T15:41:25","date_gmt":"2020-02-25T23:41:25","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/sdc.wastateleg.org\/keiser\/?p=1481"},"modified":"2020-09-16T17:08:32","modified_gmt":"2020-09-17T00:08:32","slug":"washington-lawmakers-consider-restrictions-on-insulin-prices","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/senatedemocrats.wa.gov\/keiserarchive\/2020\/02\/25\/washington-lawmakers-consider-restrictions-on-insulin-prices\/","title":{"rendered":"Washington lawmakers consider restrictions on insulin prices"},"content":{"rendered":"

From the Spokesman-Review<\/a><\/p>\n

Eight-year-old Levi Markland told lawmakers Tuesday he\u2019s not supposed to worry about dying, but he does.<\/p>\n

Levi has Type 1 diabetes and his family spends up to $1,000 a month on insulin.<\/p>\n

Diabetes is unpredictable, expensive and cruel, said Amber Markland, Levi\u2019s mom, who was sitting next to him as they testified at a House Health Care and Wellness Committee hearing.<\/p>\n

The Olympia mother of three described the difficulty of \u201cknowing that if you spend one extra cent you might not be able to afford the medicine that keeps someone you love alive.\u201d<\/p>\n

Coverage for insulin prescriptions would not be subjected to any deductibles\u00a0under a bill being considered by the committee<\/a>, and a subscriber\u2019s out-of-pocket expenses for insulin couldn\u2019t top $100 a month starting Jan. 1. The Health Care Authority would also be required to monitor the price of insulin in Washington.<\/p>\n

Around 90,000 residents filled 771,000 insulin prescriptions in 2018, a 15% increase since 2014, according to the All Payer Claims Database, and that data doesn\u2019t account for people on Veterans Administration and some self-insured plans.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt is a life-and-death issue, and we can do something about it,\u201d said Sen. Karen Keiser, D-Des Moines, the bill\u2019s sponsor.<\/p>\n

Health plans could submit a request for a $5 increase to out-of-pocket expenses for every $100 increase of insulin starting on Jan. 1, 2022, according to the bill.<\/p>\n

Cathy McCaul, AARP advocacy director, said that 70% of Washington residents they polled found it difficult to pay for medication, including insulin.<\/p>\n

\n
\n
In the poll responses, 26% of people indicated they were cutting their dosage to offset the high insulin prices, McCaul said. People are also skipping their dosage so they can pay for rent and food, she added.<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n

Kevin Wren, chapter leader of Washington Insulin For All, said he has rationed his insulin his whole life, whether he had insurance or was unemployed, leading to other health complications.<\/p>\n

\u201cAll diabetics need our insulin,\u201d he said. \u201cWithout it, our food is poison and we die in a couple of days without it \u2013 painfully.\u201d<\/p>\n

Amber said everyone needs insulin to live but most people manufacture their own, internally. Levi has to pay for his.<\/p>\n

\u201cPharmaceutical companies put a price tag on Levi\u2019s life,\u201d she said.<\/p>\n

Levi urged committee members to pass the bill so families like his can \u201clive with less worry and more time to love each other.\u201d<\/p>\n

The bill already passed the Senate on a bipartisan vote and is scheduled for a committee vote Thursday.<\/p>\n

By Daisy Zavala<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

From the Spokesman-Review Eight-year-old Levi Markland told lawmakers Tuesday he\u2019s not supposed to worry about dying, but he does. Levi has Type 1 diabetes and his family spends up to $1,000 a month on insulin. Diabetes is unpredictable, expensive and cruel, said Amber Markland, Levi\u2019s mom, who was sitting next to him as they testified at a House Health Care and Wellness Committee hearing. The Olympia mother of three described the difficulty of \u201cknowing that if you spend one extra cent you might not be able to afford the medicine that keeps someone you love alive.\u201d Coverage for insulin prescriptions…<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":16,"featured_media":1482,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"disable_featured_image":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[35],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-1481","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-in-the-news"],"yoast_head":"\nWashington lawmakers consider restrictions on insulin prices - Karen Keiser Archive<\/title>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/senatedemocrats.wa.gov\/keiserarchive\/2020\/02\/25\/washington-lawmakers-consider-restrictions-on-insulin-prices\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"Washington lawmakers consider restrictions on insulin prices - Karen Keiser Archive\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"From the Spokesman-Review Eight-year-old Levi Markland told lawmakers Tuesday he\u2019s not supposed to worry about dying, but he does. Levi has Type 1 diabetes and his family spends up to $1,000 a month on insulin. Diabetes is unpredictable, expensive and cruel, said Amber Markland, Levi\u2019s mom, who was sitting next to him as they testified at a House Health Care and Wellness Committee hearing. 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