Senator Hassan Joins Colleagues in Calling On Pharmaceutical Companies to Explain Skyrocketing Insulin Prices

WASHINGTON – Today, Senator Maggie Hassan, a member of the Senate Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions (HELP) Committee, joined her Democratic colleagues on the HELP Committee in sending letters to executives at Eli Lilly, Novo Nordisk, and Sanofi — the three insulin manufacturers in the U.S. — demanding information about rising insulin costs and questioning the companies that recently decided to raise prices for the life-saving drug even further. 

“According to the World Health Organization, insulin is an essential medicine, meaning that access to this drug at a price that individuals and communities can afford is a basic requirement of a functioning health care system. Unfortunately, rapidly increasing insulin prices mean that for many patients, access to this essential medicine is threatened. Patients have had to resort to desperate measures when confronted with increased insulin prices or high cost-sharing for their prescriptions. Some patients have turned to GoFundMe pages to request help paying for insulin, and one in four diabetic patients report rationing the medication because of the cost, with potentially devastating consequences. It is clear these steep price increases are resulting in patients lacking access to the life-saving medications they need,” wrote the Senators.

Senator Hassan has been a leader in the fight to lower health care costs. Senator Hassan joined Senator Tina Smith (D-MN) and a number of her colleagues in introducing comprehensive legislation to address the skyrocketing cost of prescription drugs. The Affordable Medications Act will help hold large pharmaceutical companies accountable for high prices and bring down costs for both consumers and taxpayers by allowing Medicare to negotiate the price of prescription drugs, permitting the safe importation of affordable prescription drugs from places like Canada, ending the senseless tax breaks for drug companies that allow them to take tax deductions on the billions of dollars they spend on advertising, and more.

The letter was also signed by Ranking Member of the HELP Committee Patty Murray, along with Senators Bernie Sanders (D-VT), Bob Casey (D-PA), Tammy Baldwin (D-WI), Chris Murphy (CT), Elizabeth Warren (D-MA), Tim Kaine (D-VA), Tina Smith (D-MN), Doug Jones (D-AL), and Jacky Rosen (D-NV).

A PDF of the letter to Eli Lilly is available HERE.

A PDF of the letter to Novo Nordisk is available HERE.

A PDF of the letter to Sanofi is available HERE.

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