Oklahoma considers lawsuit over the price of insulin
The Oklahoma attorney general’s office is considering legal action against drug manufacturers and pharmacy benefit managers, alleging wrongful conduct that resulted in artificially increased prices for insulin.
Attorney General Gentner Drummond said in a statement that he is seeking outside counsel to investigate and potentially pursue litigation. Payment would be based on how much is recovered should a lawsuit be successful.
“I will not allow price-gouging and greed to put in harm’s way innocent Oklahomans who are dependent on insulin to survive,” Drummond said Thursday. “I will fight to hold accountable anyone who has hiked insulin prices illegally and prioritized profits over patients.”
Insulin, a hormone that helps convert food into energy, controls blood sugar levels in diabetes patients.
Nearly 13% of Oklahoma adults are diagnosed with diabetes, according to Drummond’s office.
Other states have filed litigation over the price of insulin.
Ethan Shaner, deputy attorney general in the office’s consumer protection unit, said they get inquiries about why the price of a drug that has been around a long time has increased at a rate that outpaces inflation.
In 2021, Gov. Kevin Stitt signed House Bill 1019 that caps what insurance companies that cover insulin could charge.
The cap set a 30-day supply at $30 and a 90-day supply at $90.
Sen. Greg McCortney, R-Ada, said Thursday lawmakers last session passed House Bill 1843 to move enforcement of laws governing pharmacy benefit managers into the attorney general’s office from the insurance commissioner.
Stitt vetoed the legislation, but lawmakers overrode it, he said.
The state needed to be “more aggressive” in enforcement of laws governing the issue, McCortney said.
He said the pricing of medication is a problem in the United States.
“Across the board, we pay more for medication than any country in the world,” McCortney said.
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