Minnesota legislation works to save lives
March 19, 2020
In order to address the increasingly unaffordable insulin pricing, state legislators have introduced two bills — one led by Democrats in the House and another led by Republicans in the Senate.
According to Abeler, a co-author of the Senate bill, both bills aim to eliminate deaths associated with emergency insulin rationing. However, the Senate bill requires manufacturers to aid in supplying insulin, supplementing the cost with tax-payer dollars.
Alternatively, the House bill funds the program entirely through charging manufacturers, according to Winkler, who co-authors the House bill.
Anderson said he believes prices can only be fixed by legislation as the current marketplace does not allow for competition.
“The problem right now is just that there are patents on insulin so no one can produce it themselves or no competitors can produce it,” Anderson said. “Legislation is going to be by far the most effective option.”
In order to lower costs, Brubaker said regulators must address the availability and the cost of insulin without simply paying for individuals.
“If somebody absolutely has to have it, I think that’s where our government has to step in and figure out a way to make things available to people who can’t pay that price,” Brubaker said.
Goldenberg encouraged a balance between the profit of companies and the accessibility of insulin.
“I don’t think it should be regulated to the point where it pretty much destroys the industry,” Goldenberg said. “There’s still lots of employees and the solution isn’t just to destroy all these (companies) — we’ve got to make sure that they’re still profitable — but obviously limited so it’s affordable for more people.”
Abeler said he believes both bills will be combined and passed into law in the near future, and will be looked back upon as a great bipartisan success to save countless Minnesota lives.
“When the dust settles, this will be seen as an example of how two parties can work together to solve very hard problems,” Abeler said. “It may not seem that way just yet, but it’s going to come to that and the solution will be a bipartisan, solid solution that will stand the test of time.”
As of March 16, both bills have passed their respective chambers and are entering conference committee, according to the Star Tribune.