California will begin making its own low-cost insulin in an effort to deflate prices for the life-saving medication, Gov. Gavin Newsom announced yesterday. (Do you get the feeling he's running for president?) Via CNN:
The move is possible through an allocation of $100 million in the state budget for the manufacture of the medication at a cheaper price.
“Nothing, nothing epitomizes market failures more than the cost of insulin,” he said in a video posted on the governor’s official Twitter page.
Newsom noted that $50 million will go toward funding a California-based manufacturing facility “that will provide new, high-paying jobs and a stronger supply chain for the drug.” The other $50 million will cover the cost of developing insulin products.
So what effect will this have on the rest of the country? Will large pharmacy chains contract with the facility, or will Big Pharma freeze them out of the national market? They can fight it, but the tide against price-gouging life-saving drugs is turning:
Civica Rx, a nonprofit generic drug maker, announced In March that it planned to make and sell insulin for no more than $30 a vial. It is expected to be available as soon as early 2024, pending federal approval.
Mark Cuban is also doing his part.
The state has yet to identify a drug manufacturer to partner with, but a Newsom administration official said this could happen in the next few months. The state’s insulin would be available to all Californians, publicly and privately insured, as well as to the uninsured. It’s unclear how soon this insulin could hit the market, but it would likely be at least a couple of years, an administration official said.
The goal is to provide “Californians with access to insulin products that are a fraction of the $300 per vial prices charged by insulin manufacturers in the U.S.,” the administration’s budget request reads.
I'm just really, really tired of how massive corporations get away with stiffing people. Biden appointed a really aggressive anti-trust team, but FTC Chair Lina Khan was blocked by minoirty commissioners for the first year. Fortunately, we have the majority now.
But sure, there's no difference between parties and the Dems are too timid to take on special interests. Uh huh.
