Fighting to bring relief to Louisiana patients struggling with diabetes, Attorney General Jeff Landry has filed a lawsuit against drug manufacturers and the Pharmacy Benefit Managers (PBMs) who have raised the prescription costs of insulin.
“So many of our neighbors struggling with diabetes require insulin to control and treat their condition; as a result, these Louisiana residents are reliant upon the companies that manufacture diabetes medications in order to stay alive,” said Attorney General Landry. “Unfortunately, manufacturers are either colluding with PBMs or being complicit in the ridiculous prices that PBMs have imposed on patients. These schemes have allowed the price to increase more than 1,000% – purely for their own financial gain.”
At a press conference this morning (available to view here), Attorney General Landry explained how diabetes is an epidemic and a public health crisis in Louisiana. According to the American Diabetes Association, more than 505,000 Louisiana residents have been diagnosed with diabetes. An additional 113,000 people are estimated to have undiagnosed diabetes. And over 1.2 million people in our State have prediabetes, the majority of whom will eventually become diabetic.
“If patients with diabetes ration their insulin – or do not take the full amount prescribed – they can suffer heart damage, kidney problems, blindness, or circulatory problems that could lead to the amputation of arms and legs; some even die,” added Attorney General Landry. “Yet too many of our neighbors, especially the poor and those in the middle class, have been forced to ration their insulin – not because it is not available, but because they cannot afford it.”
“With the manufacturers and PBMs focusing on profits over patients, they act in perfect lockstep to raise prices at the expense of Louisiana lives,” concluded Attorney General Landry. “I hope our litigation will ensure a reasonable cap on insulin prices so that the people of Louisiana can afford this life-saving and life-supporting drug.”
Original source can be found here.