Insulin manufacturers Novo Nordisk and Sanofi have announced price cuts for certain best-selling insulin products, following a similar announcement earlier this month from Eli Lilly — meaning that all three major U.S. insulin manufacturers will now offer lower prices and cap out-of-pocket expenses for many customers.
Just over a year ago, President Joe Biden proposed a $35 monthly cap on out-of-pocket insulin costs under nearly all health insurance plans. Since then, Congress has made this $35 cap a reality for Medicare beneficiaries — but not for everyone with private health insurance or no health insurance. With this backdrop, Eli Lilly announced that it would cut the price of various insulin products by as much as 70% while also capping the out-of-pocket cost of its insulin products at $35 per month at participating pharmacies for people with private health insurance plans. For people without health insurance, the same $35 cap is available by signing up for the Lilly Insulin Value Program.
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Insulin price cuts from all three major manufacturers
Now, it appears that Novo Nordisk and Sanofi are following Lilly’s lead by announcing similar price cuts for some of their top-selling insulin products. Novo Nordisk announced that as part of its efforts to “identify a sustainable approach to reduce insulin costs for patients,” it would lower the list prices for both vials and pre-filled of various insulin products by up to 75%. The affected products are Levemir (insulin detemir), Novolin (insulin human), NovoLog (insulin aspart), and NovoLog Mix 70/30 (insulin aspart protamine and insulin aspart). Unbranded biologic products, including insulin, will also see their list prices reduced to match the price reductions of branded products, and these changes will go into effect on January 1, 2024.
“Novo Nordisk will continue to work with a diverse group of stakeholders to understand emerging patient needs,” the company noted in its announcement, adding that people with diabetes can learn more about the company’s assistance and affordability programs at NovoCare.com.
Sanofi announced, for its part, that it would cut the list prices of Lantus (insulin glargine) by 78% and Apidra (insulin glulisine) by 70%, and that it would cap out-of-pocket costs for Lantus at $35 per month for people with private insurance plans — with these changes going into effect on January 1, 2024. The company noted that these latest measures “come in addition to decisions taken in June 2022 to lower diabetes medicines costs: the launch of an unbranded Lantus biologic at -60% versus Lantus list price, and a cap on out-of-pocket costs on insulin to $35 for all people without insurance.” Sanofi also noted in its announcement that all commercially insured customers are eligible for its copay assistance programs, which limit out-of-pocket costs for most people to $15 for a 30-day supply of an insulin product. In addition, all people without insurance are eligible for the company’s Insulins Valyou Savings Program, which lets them buy a 30-day supply of one or more products for $35.
“Sanofi believes that no one should struggle to pay for their insulin, and we are proud of our continued actions to improve access and affordability for millions of patients,” said Olivier Bogillot, head of U.S. general medicines at Sanofi, in the announcement. “Our decision to cut the list price of our lead insulin needs to be coupled with broader change to the overall system to actually drive savings for patients at the pharmacy counter.”
Want to learn more about saving money on insulin? Read “Insulin Prices: Four Ways to Pay Less” and “Cheaper Insulin: Older Insulins May Be Answer to High Prices.”