March 17, 2023 -- French pharmaceutical company Sanofi announced Thursday that it will cut the list price of its U.S. insulin drug, Lantus, by 78% and will cap the cost of the drug at $35 per month for people with private insurance, making it the third major insulin provider to cut costs for consumers.
The price change will go into effect Jan. 1, 2024. In a statement, the company also said it will cut the list price of its short-acting insulin Apidra by 70%. Sanofi offers uninsured Americans a $35 insulin cap through its Valyou Savings Program.
Earlier this month, Eli Lilly and Novo Nordisk announced similar pricing changes.
Health advocates have long urged pharmaceutical companies to reduce the cost of insulin, which is relatively inexpensive to manufacture. The companies acted after the Inflation Reduction Act capped Medicare copays for insulin at $35 per month.
“As of this afternoon, all three of the leading insulin producers in America have agreed to substantially reduce their prices, following my calls to expand my $35 cap for seniors to all Americans,” President Joe Biden said in a statement. “Sanofi is the latest company to recognize that charging hundreds of dollars for insulin that costs $10 to produce is just wrong, especially when the lives of so many children, parents, and grandparents depend on it.”
The American Diabetes Association says more than 37 million Americans are living with diabetes and 8.4 million of them rely on insulin to survive. The drug helps regulate blood sugar in people who have type 1 and type 2 diabetes.
“We are pleased to see others join our efforts to help patients as we now accelerate the transformation of the U.S. insulin market,” said Olivier Bogillot, the head of U.S. General Medicines for Sanofi. “Our decision to cut the list price of our lead insulin needs to be coupled with broader change to the overall system to actually drive savings for patients at the pharmacy counter.”