The CEOs from Eli Lilly and Company, Novo Nordisk and Sanofi will testify as Sanders uses his bully pulpit to continue pressuring the companies about the high cost of insulin, even though all three said they plan to lower the prices of older insulin products.
Aside from insulin, the hearing will also feature executives from the major pharmacy benefit managers (PBMs): CVS Health, Express Scripts and OptumRX.
In a statement, Sanders acknowledged that all three of the insulin companies said they will cap out-of-pocket costs at $35 and cut the list price of their most commonly prescribed product.
“That’s an important step forward. We must make certain, however, that those price reductions go into effect in a way that results in every American getting the insulin they need at an affordable price,” Sanders said.
“But that’s not all. We have got to substantially lower the price of all prescription drugs. The United States cannot continue to pay, by far, the highest prices in the world for prescription drugs while drug companies and PBMs make billions in profits,” he added.
In testimony and statements shared ahead of the Senate Health, Education, Labor & Pensions Committee hearing, the insulin companies noted their recent price cuts but also seemed to point the finger at the drug supply chain broadly — and PBMs specifically — for high patient out-of-pocket costs.
For example, according to advance testimony, Sanofi CEO Paul Hudson is expected to say the company has previously launched two insulin products at prices “well below other available therapies,” but they were not broadly covered by health plans or PBMs.
In a statement, Eli Lilly said the average patient paid $20.48 per month for Lilly insulins even before the recent price cuts.
“We aspire toward a system that incentivizes both world-leading innovation and lower costs for patients—but we recognize that structural changes are needed to achieve these goals,” the company said.
