The California Legislature passed a bill that would limit what health insurers and disability insurance policies can charge for insulin. The limit: $35 for a 30-day supply.
That includes deductibles and copays.
His reason doesn’t appear to be altruistic. Newsom said the state has given a $50 million contract to the nonprofit pharamaceutical company, Civica Rx. It will be producing insulin for the state and it will be called CalRx.
In the veto message, the governor said the state will only charge $30 for a 10 milliliter vial of insulin.
“With CalRx, we are getting at the underlying cost, which is the true sustainable solution to high-cost pharmaceuticals,” Newsom wrote. “With copay caps however, the long-term costs are still passed down to consumers through higher premiums from health plans.”
The veto goes back to the California Senate and to some controversy. San Francisco Democrat Sen. Scott Wiener called the veto a major setback that will make thousands of diabetic Californians have to choose between buying insulin or buying food.
“This is a missed opportunity that will force them to wait months or years for relief from the skyrocketing costs of medical care when they could have had it immediately,” Wiener said.
Source link: Insurance Business America — https://bit.ly/3Q90Drp
