Today, Rep. Mondaire Jones voted for landmark legislation to deliver lower insulin costs for working families. By capping out-of-pocket expenses, the Affordable Insulin Now Act will ensure that New Yorkers pay no more than $35 for a monthly supply of insulin.
“Today, the House took a key step forward in the fight to lower health care costs for working families,” said Rep. Mondaire Jones. “I proudly cast my vote for the Affordable Insulin Now Act to cap outrageous insulin prices at $35 per month. I will never forget how, in October 2019, I spoke with a mother in Tarrytown who drove to Canada each month just to buy insulin for her son, as she could not afford it in Westchester. This vote is for her.”
Rising by 54 percent from 2014 to 2019, the cost of insulin has created an affordability crisis for the 9.4 percent of New Yorkers living with diabetes. Americans currently face an average price of $98.70 for a unit of insulin – ten times higher than in other wealthy nations. One in four Americans who rely on insulin has been forced to ration doses due to high prices, a last resort with potentially fatal consequences.
The Affordable Insulin Now Act will require private health insurance plans to cover insulin, limiting monthly cost-sharing to $35 or 25 percent of a plan’s negotiated price – whichever is lower. It also requires Medicare prescription drug plans to limit cost-sharing for insulin to $35 per month. This legislation comes as House Democrats continue working to advance comprehensive reform addressing the high cost of prescription drugs.
News from the Office of Congressman Mondaire Jones
