Insulin was costing St. Petersburg woman $500 per month with insurance

Now tens of millions of Americans living with diabetes have better access to life-saving medication. Drug maker Eli Lilly slash prices of its most commonly prescribed insulin products. Tantepeve reporter Liz Crawford talked to a St. Petersburg mother about what this means for her family. Yabre Reed was diagnosed with free diabetes 10 years ago. I didn't take it serious because I didn't know anything about diabetes really. She says her condition worsened and she needed insulin.

She says, okay, your co-pay is $500. I'm like $500. That was with her insurance, $500 every month. I just started crying because I'm like, I need this medication. Without this medication, who's to say I'm gonna wake up in the morning? She found a workaround through another pharmacy, but budgeting has been challenging. Either I'm gonna feed my kids or I'm gonna get my insulin, which one is it? According to the CDC, diabetes is the seventh leading cause of death in the US. In the last 20 years, the number of adults diagnosed with diabetes has more than doubled.

Tampa endocrinologist Dr. Olga Kalibe has seen her patients attempt to ration their medication. Take less insulin, allowing the glucose levels to rise, which is dangerous. Now drug maker Eli Lilly capped out of pocket costs at $35 a month for two common insulin products. To me, honestly, a lot of medications, especially insulin, probably should be free. My insulin pain becomes. It's not just the insulin.

Reed has to budget for needles, monitors, patches, and more. When you have to buy all that at once, it kind of gets overburied. Some hope this latest move by one drug maker will encourage more cost cutting measures across the board. Frustrating for the patients. It's an unnecessary burden on medical professionals making day to day life of diabetics harder. Liz Crawford, Tentampa Bay. The CDC says the increase in diabetics is due to an aging American population with a higher prevalence.

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