4 ms·

How does this jive with the fact that they increased the price of these insulin more than 10x over the last decades[0]? Poor souls must've just been keeping up

by vasco 4y ago

How does this jive with the fact that they increased the price of these insulin more than 10x over the last decades[0]? Poor souls must've just been keeping up with inflation over there at the pharma lot. [0] https://www.google.com/search?q=humalog+price+chart+usa https://www.google.com/search?q=humalog+price+chart+usa

refurb 4y ago
It's a game of discounts with insurance companies in order to be a "preferred" product. Manufacturers provide big rebates (~80%). The net price (what the manufacturer actually gets for Humalog) has dropped 16% since 2015. In 2019 the list price is $275 but the net price is $60. https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-VfnPjfmmwUY/XzFtgfU87XI/AAAAAAAAqmU/p6GJM8D2x7AqTE7PtXDrq8wXDmmSkGSvACLcBGAsYHQ/s1600/Lilly-2019.PNG https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-VfnPjfmmwUY/XzFtgfU87XI/AAAAAAAAq...
- bart_spoon 4y ago
  You are being downvoted but you are entirely correct. Pricing for medications in the US, including insulin, follows an absolutely nightmarish set of rituals due to the need to gain access through insurers. Eli Lilly’s financials are publicly available, their revenue per unit of insulin has largely kept pace with inflation. The skyrocketing costs of the sticker price of insulin is entirely due to the lack of a universal public insurance option in the US leading to the horrific rebate system we currently have, which largely benefits insurers and PBMs. Pharma companies come out neutral (from a revenue perspective, definitely negative from a PR perspective), and consumers, particularly those on high deductible plans or without insurance, are gutted.
  - vasco 4y ago
    I haven't downvoted, but if you look there the original price was ~$20, now the net that the other user shared was ~$60. Even like that it's still a 3x for no reason.
    - refurb 4y ago
      When was it $20? It hasn't been less than $60 since 2009. https://www.businessinsider.com/insulin-price-increased-last-decade-chart-2019-9 https://www.businessinsider.com/insulin-price-increased-last...

by vasco 4y ago

refurb 4y ago

It's a game of discounts with insurance companies in order to be a "preferred" product. Manufacturers provide big rebates (~80%). The net price (what the manufacturer actually gets for Humalog) has dropped 16% since 2015. In 2019 the list price is $275 but the net price is $60. https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-VfnPjfmmwUY/XzFtgfU87XI/AAAAAAAAqmU/p6GJM8D2x7AqTE7PtXDrq8wXDmmSkGSvACLcBGAsYHQ/s1600/Lilly-2019.PNG https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-VfnPjfmmwUY/XzFtgfU87XI/AAAAAAAAq...

bart_spoon 4y ago
You are being downvoted but you are entirely correct. Pricing for medications in the US, including insulin, follows an absolutely nightmarish set of rituals due to the need to gain access through insurers. Eli Lilly’s financials are publicly available, their revenue per unit of insulin has largely kept pace with inflation. The skyrocketing costs of the sticker price of insulin is entirely due to the lack of a universal public insurance option in the US leading to the horrific rebate system we currently have, which largely benefits insurers and PBMs. Pharma companies come out neutral (from a revenue perspective, definitely negative from a PR perspective), and consumers, particularly those on high deductible plans or without insurance, are gutted.
- vasco 4y ago
  I haven't downvoted, but if you look there the original price was ~$20, now the net that the other user shared was ~$60. Even like that it's still a 3x for no reason.
  - refurb 4y ago
    When was it $20? It hasn't been less than $60 since 2009. https://www.businessinsider.com/insulin-price-increased-last-decade-chart-2019-9 https://www.businessinsider.com/insulin-price-increased-last...