INDIANAPOLIS — Hoosiers with diabetes call it a game-changer.
The announcement Wednesday from Eli Lilly, that the drugmaker would cap out-of-pocket insulin costs is welcome news, especially after years of price hikes that diabetics say made simply surviving tough to afford.
In 2019, 13News shared the struggle of paying for life-saving medication.
Greg Mrakich, a type one diabetic in Indianapolis, was making regular trips to Canada to get vials of insulin.
The unwanted adventures saved him thousands of dollars because the cost in the states was far too steep.
"I could buy a six-month supply of insulin in Canada for what the co-pay for a 2-week supply was when bought in the states," Mrakich explained.
Years later, pandemic relief gave him lower insulin costs.
And now he's thrilled to know millions of Americans will get savings too, after Eli Lilly agreed to slash its prices on insulin.
"You don't have that looming over your head for the rest of your life as far as having to get the medicine you need just to stay alive," Mrakich said.
The Indianapolis-based drugmaker announced it's capping the out-of-pocket cost of its insulin at $35 a month.
The change takes effect immediately.
"For the vast majority of people they don't have to do anything. they show up at the pharmacy. They get their bill and it should be $35 or less," said Michael Mason, president of Lilly Diabetes with Eli Lilly & Company.
Starting in May, Lilly said it also will cut the price of its generic version of Humalog to $25 a vial.
In September, it will cut the most commonly prescribed Humalog, and Humulin by 70%.
Sa'Ra Skipper says this is big news for a lot of Hoosiers, and her own family.
She and her sister are both diabetic and she says in years past, they had to ration medicine sometimes.
"We had an incident in 2018 where my sister and I were sharing the same vial of insulin," Skipper said. "My sister was hospitalized for four days like almost lost her life and there are people who have lost their lives because they, unfortunately, have had to ration their life-sustaining medicines."
Skipper helped rally for change here in Indy, along with hundreds of others with T1 International.
The Lilly announcement gives her peace of mind.
"It's a victory I can say that. However the work is not done," she said. "But just to know that so many more people have more access to what keeps them alive is you know, it's great."
"It's long overdue," Mrakich added.
Diabetics given financial relief to help them stay healthy.