Governor J.B. Pritzker joined state lawmakers to push legislation to lower insulin costs in the State of Illinois, which has skyrocketed in recent years.
Supporters of the bill say that some people with diabetes are having to forgo their medication due to insulin becoming too expensive.
Senate Bill 667 would make Illinois the second state in the nation to set a cap on insulin costs, limiting patients’ out-of-pocket costs at $100 for a 30-day supply.
Pritzker called the legislature to pass the bill, which was originally filed in late May. The bill is expected to be reintroduced to both chambers during the Fall veto session, which begins in about two weeks.
“This measure will cap costs significantly below the $500-$900 payments that many Illinoisans currently face every month. I’m asking the General Assembly to join us in passing this bill in the veto session, making Illinois the third state in the nation to formally put patients first on this issue,” Pritzker said yesterday in Chicago with members of the General Assembly and Illinois AARP.
Pritzker said the costs to insulin users in the state go beyond their pocketbooks: “As prices of insulin have skyrocketed, more and more insulin users have been forced to substitute with lower quality products or seek options outside of the country or even to ration their supply, and some have died doing so.”
Illinois Democratic Senator Andy Manar, who sponsored the bill said that residents shouldn’t be forced to choose between their medication and their groceries to survive.
According to the Illinois Department of Public Health, approximately 1.3 million Illinois residents have diabetes, which is roughly 12.5% of the state’s overall population.