Deal to reduce insulin price for Medicare

WASHINGTON — Many Medicare recipients could pay less for insulin next year under a deal President Donald Trump announced Tuesday in a pivot to pocketbook issues important in November’s election.

“I hope the seniors are going to remember it,” Trump said at a Rose Garden ceremony, joined by executives from insurance and drug companies, along with seniors and advocates for people with diabetes.

The deal comes as Trump tries to woo older voters critical to his reelection prospects.

Medicare recipients who pick a drug plan offering the new insulin benefit would pay a maximum of $35 a month starting next year, a savings estimated at $446 annually. Fluctuating cost-sharing amounts that are common now would be replaced by a manageable sum.

The insulin benefit will be voluntary, so during open enrollment this fall Medicare enrollees who are interested must make sure to pick an insurance plan that provides it. Most people with Medicare will have access to them.

Administration officials are hoping the announcement will provide a respite from the grim drumbeat of coronavirus pandemic news.

Stable copays for insulin are the result of an agreement shepherded by the administration between insulin manufacturers and major insurers, Medicare chief Seema Verma told the Associated Press. The three major suppliers, Eli Lilly, Novo Nordisk and Sanofi, were involved.

“It was a delicate negotiation,” Verma said. Drugmakers and insurers have been at odds in recent years, blaming one another for high prices. “I do think this is a big step.”

The cost of insulin is one the biggest worries for consumers generally concerned about high prices for brand name drugs. Millions of people with diabetes use insulin to keep their blood sugars within normal ranges and stave off complications that can include heart disease, blindness, kidney failure and amputations. People with diabetes also suffer worse outcomes from COVID-19.

An AP-NORC poll this month found warning signs for Trump with older voters. Fifty-four percent of adults 60 and older said they disapproved of how Trump is handling his job as president, while 45 percent approved.

On Tuesday, Trump tried to suggest former President Barack Obama was responsible for high drug prices. And he took a dig at former Vice President Joe Biden, who’s running to deny him a second term. “Sleepy Joe can’t do this,” Trump said.

The president last week told Republican senators at a Capitol Hill meeting he still wants to pass a bill this year to lower drug costs, saying “I think you have to do it,” according to a summary from an attendee. Bipartisan legislation to limit price increases and reduce costs for older people with high drug bills is pending in the Senate.

But the fate of any drug pricing bill seems to rest with House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, who has a much more ambitious plan for Medicare to negotiate prices for the costliest drugs, not just insulin. Pelosi would use expected savings to provide vision, dental and hearing coverage for older adults. Most Republicans oppose that approach as an expansion of government price-setting.