Insulin Capped at $35/mo for Seniors

I have some great news for our seniors: thanks to the Inflation Reduction Act (IRA), which was signed into law last August, the price of insulin for those on Medicare is now capped at $35/month.

This is an enormous win for Michigan’s seniors, one that has been years in the making. I’ve been talking about lowering the cost of prescription drugs throughout my time in Congress, and I am thrilled that Congress was finally able to supply this relief to the over 3 million Americans on Medicare that depend on insulin to survive.*

Getting this provision passed into law means that more than 66,000 seniors in Michigan will save hundreds of dollars on their insulin prescription every year.** According to the Department of Health and Human Services, the average Medicare enrollee in Michigan will save more than $400 every year thanks to the Inflation Reduction Act.**

And it doesn’t end there: more and more of the IRA’s drug provisions are set to kick in soon, like Medicare’s ability to negotiate with drug companies and use their buying power to secure lower prices, or capping out-of-pocket costs at $2,000 for Medicare enrollees.

These provisions are designed with one goal in mind: to chip away at the sky-high cost of prescription drugs, and we’re finally making that happen. 

– Rep. Elissa Slotkin

*CNBC, 1 in 5 insulin users on Medicare has ‘catastrophic’ drug spending, Yale finds. The Inflation Reduction Act may help; 2022

**Department of Health and Human Services, Insulin Affordability and the Inflation Reduction Act: Medicare Beneficiary Savings by State and Demographics; 2023