US drugmaker Eli Lilly and Company announced on Wednesday that it is slashing prices of its most commonly-prescribed insulins by 70 per cent, after years of soaring drug costs for American diabetes sufferers.
Lilly said it would cut the price of its non-branded insulin to $25 a vial from May 1. It will also cut the price of Humalog, the company's most commonly-prescribed insulin and Humalin injections by 70 per cent towards the end of the year.
The company also capped out-of-pocket costs at $35 a month for patients who have private health insurance.
Insulin prices have been surging for years. Retail prices for some insulins increased by 200 per cent from 2007-2018, according to a study by The Lancet. Some Americans reported spending up to $1,000 when higher doses of the life-saving medication are required.
"For far too long, American families have been crushed by drug costs many times higher than what people in other countries are charged for the same prescriptions," President Joe Biden said in a press release.
As part of the Inflation Reduction Act signed into law last year, insulin costs for those covered by Medicare were capped at $35. Mr Biden at the time called on companies to reduce their own prices.
"Today, Eli Lilly did that," he said.
In a separate statement, Lilly chief executive David Ricks said the company's price cuts "should make a real difference for Americans with diabetes".
Mr Ricks said Lilly was working to immediately cap out-of-pocket costs for those who are not covered by the recent Medicare cap.
The Centres for Disease Control and Prevention estimate that 37.3 million people in the US have diabetes. Roughly 8.4 million people require insulin to treat the condition, the Associated Press reported, citing data from the American Diabetes Association (ADA).
The American Diabetes Foundation called on other drugmakers to announce similar policies.
“We will work to ensure that Eli Lilly’s patient assistance programme is benefiting patients as intended and continue the fight so that everyone who needs insulin has access”, said Charles Henderson, chief executive of the ADA.
The number of people globally with diabetes rose from 108 million in 1980 to 422 million in 2014, with the condition most rapidly rising in low- and middle-income countries, the World Health Organisation reported in 2022.
Between 2000 and 2019 there was a 3 per cent increase in diabetes mortality rates by age, with that number reaching 13 per cent in low- and middle-income countries.
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UPI facts
More than 2.2 million Indian tourists arrived in UAE in 2023
More than 3.5 million Indians reside in UAE
Indian tourists can make purchases in UAE using rupee accounts in India through QR-code-based UPI real-time payment systems
Indian residents in UAE can use their non-resident NRO and NRE accounts held in Indian banks linked to a UAE mobile number for UPI transactions
10 tips for entry-level job seekers
- Have an up-to-date, professional LinkedIn profile. If you don’t have a LinkedIn account, set one up today. Avoid poor-quality profile pictures with distracting backgrounds. Include a professional summary and begin to grow your network.
- Keep track of the job trends in your sector through the news. Apply for job alerts at your dream organisations and the types of jobs you want – LinkedIn uses AI to share similar relevant jobs based on your selections.
- Double check that you’ve highlighted relevant skills on your resume and LinkedIn profile.
- For most entry-level jobs, your resume will first be filtered by an applicant tracking system for keywords. Look closely at the description of the job you are applying for and mirror the language as much as possible (while being honest and accurate about your skills and experience).
- Keep your CV professional and in a simple format – make sure you tailor your cover letter and application to the company and role.
- Go online and look for details on job specifications for your target position. Make a list of skills required and set yourself some learning goals to tick off all the necessary skills one by one.
- Don’t be afraid to reach outside your immediate friends and family to other acquaintances and let them know you are looking for new opportunities.
- Make sure you’ve set your LinkedIn profile to signal that you are “open to opportunities”. Also be sure to use LinkedIn to search for people who are still actively hiring by searching for those that have the headline “I’m hiring” or “We’re hiring” in their profile.
- Prepare for online interviews using mock interview tools. Even before landing interviews, it can be useful to start practising.
- Be professional and patient. Always be professional with whoever you are interacting with throughout your search process, this will be remembered. You need to be patient, dedicated and not give up on your search. Candidates need to make sure they are following up appropriately for roles they have applied.
Arda Atalay, head of Mena private sector at LinkedIn Talent Solutions, Rudy Bier, managing partner of Kinetic Business Solutions and Ben Kinerman Daltrey, co-founder of KinFitz
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Defined benefit and defined contribution schemes explained
Defined Benefit Plan (DB)
A defined benefit plan is where the benefit is defined by a formula, typically length of service to and salary at date of leaving.
Defined Contribution Plan (DC)
A defined contribution plan is where the benefit depends on the amount of money put into the plan for an employee, and how much investment return is earned on those contributions.
