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California_&_Other States Sue Companies Over Insulin Prices

https://www.nytimes.com/2023/01/18/health/insulin-drug-prices-california.html

The state is taking action against three major drug companies and the big pharmacy benefit managers in an effort to temper costs for people with diabetes.

By Benjamin Ryan
Jan. 18, 2023

Many Americans with diabetes still struggle to pay for their insulin, even though Medicare placed a cap on co-payments this month.

With a population of 39 million, California has now become the largest state to sue the major companies on the insulin market, accusing them of illegally inflating the price of the treatment and spawning a financial and public health crisis.

Rob Bonta, the state’s attorney general, said in announcing the lawsuit late last week that the companies had engaged in “unlawful, unfair and deceptive practices” in violation of California’s laws on competition.

Characterizing the U.S. insulin market as “an oligopoly,” Mr. Bonta took aim in the state’s lawsuit at three pharmaceutical companies, Eli Lilly, Novo Nordisk and Sanofi, which control 90 percent of the global insulin supply, and the pharmacy benefit managers, CVS Health, Express Scripts and OptumRx, which manage 80 percent of the U.S. insulin market.

Nearly 38 million Americans have diabetes, roughly 11 percent of the U.S. population. And about eight million people — including all of those with Type 1 diabetes and many with Type 2 — need insulin treatments. Well-insured patients owe nothing or a co-pay of $20 to $35 a month for insulin, while those without insurance or high deductible plans can be charged hundreds of dollars a month…