June Leffler Published

Lowering Costs Of Diabetes Treatments, Once Again, A Goal For State Lawmakers

The number of people being diagnosed with diabetes has been on the decline since 2009.

West Virginia legislators are once again hoping to lower healthcare costs for those living with diabetes.

Dem. House Delegate Barbara Evans Fleischauer and Rep. House Delegate Matthew Rohrbach will sponsor an upcoming bill. If passed, it would limit copays on equipment and supplies at $100, and non-insulin medication at $25 a month. These supplies include insulin pumps and personal glucose testing.

Delegate Rohrbach, who is also a practicing physician, says there are plenty of life-saving tools thanks to new technology.

“We’ve really advanced a tremendous amount, but unfortunately a lot of people don’t have access to this because of the cost,” he said at a virtual press briefing Tuesday.

Last year, lawmakers tackled the cost of insulin, capping it at $100 a month in HB4543. That dollar amount was a compromise between the House and Senate. Delegate Fleischauer is pushing the subject again. The new bill will call for the same $25 a month cap on insulin that she had hoped for last year.

If passed, only those with certain insurance plans would benefit. Anyone with federally managed plans, like Medicaid and Medicare, would not see a difference. The law would apply to public employees and certain people with private insurance.