AARP Statement on Passage of House Bill 95 (Insulin Cost Cap)

NEWS

AARP Applauds Senate Action Capping Cost on Prescription Insulin

LOUISVILLE, Ky. AARP Kentucky State President Charlotte Whittaker released the following statement applauding the state Senate’s action (36-0) on final passage of House Bill 95:

“We thank every member of Kentucky’s Senate and House and especially, Representative Dan Bentley, PharmD., for taking this lifesaving leap forward. Kentuckians are paying too much for prescription drugs like insulin and too many fear one illness could bankrupt their lives. Prescription drugs don’t work if you can’t afford them. And access to affordable prescription drugs, like insulin, are a top priority for older Kentuckians,” says AARP Kentucky volunteer State President Charlotte Whittaker.

KY LRC Public Information

House Bill 95 (Rep. Danny Bentley R-98) would cap cost-sharing requirements for prescription insulin at $30 per 30-day supply for state sponsored health plans.

Whittaker added, “Kentuckians, like most Americans, are desperate for relief from high prescription drug prices. AARP is fighting hard on behalf of our members because high drug prices disproportionately hurt older Americans. Now it’s time to act. AARP Kentucky thanks the General Assembly for sending House Bill 95 to Governor Andy Beshear’s desk.”

According to the American Diabetes Association research, in 2020:
Kentucky’s diabetes epidemic: ▪ Approximately 449,000 people in Kentucky, or 13.1% of the adult population, have diagnosed diabetes. ▪ An additional 101,000 people in Kentucky have diabetes but don’t know it, greatly increasing their health risk. ▪ There are 1,168,000 people in Kentucky, 34.1% of the adult population, who have pre-diabetes with blood glucose levels that are higher than normal but not yet high enough to be diagnosed as diabetes. ▪ Every year an estimated 34,000 people in Kentucky are diagnosed with diabetes.

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