Pay More Than $100 per Month for Insulin? Read This


 2021-06-14

Beyond Type 1 believes that high quality, modern insulin must be available to people with diabetes regardless of employment or insurance status, across all demographics, without barriers and at an affordable and predictable price point. That’s why we are advocating for policies that will lower the cost of insulin, as well as other diabetes medications, technology and healthcare for all who require it.

In the meantime, whether you have private, government, or no health insurance coverage, there may be ways you can qualify for insulin for $100 per month or less. Below, we walk you through each of the methods to consider, based on your unique situation.

Want to skip the research? Go to GetInsulin.org to build a customized Insulin Action Plan. Answer just a small handful of questions about your circumstances (no data is saved, this is just to determine what programs are best for you) to receive information about the specific savings and assistance programs that may work best for you. 

Please note: if you’ve gone through the steps to use a Patient Assistance Program, copay card, or other insulin cost-reduction program and it does not work, please reach out to help@getinsulin.org. We want to ensure you are getting the insulin you need and need to hear from you if the programs do not work.

If you don’t have insurance:

If you don’t have insurance and don’t qualify for Medicaid, and make less than $51,520 for a single household or $106,000 for a family of four (400 percent of the federal poverty rate), you likely qualify for a patient assistance program that may provide insulin for $0 out of pocket for up to 12 months. Head to GetInsulin.org to get detailed instructions for how to sign up for a program.

If you do have private/commercial insurance:

Having private/commercial insurance, through your employer, through Healthcare.gov, or purchased out of pocket, means you qualify for copay cards, which can lower the cost of your insulin below $100 per month, in some cases down to $25 or even $5 per month. Head to GetInsulin.org to get an itemized list of what copay cards should work for your circumstances and insulin needs.

If you do have Medicare:

Some Medicare plans automatically cap the out of pocket cost of insulin at $35 per month, but you have to sign up for a health insurance plan that has this special coverage (not all do). Learn how to sign up for a qualifying Medicare plan here

If you take Lilly insulin (Humalog, Basaglar, Lyumjev), have Medicare Part D and meet certain income parameters, you may be eligible for $0 insulin through the Lilly Cares Foundation Patient Assistance Program, aka Lilly Cares. Head to GetInsulin.org to get instructions on other programs that may work for you. 

If you’ve tried other programs and still need to find one that works:

Lilly’s Insulin Value Copay Card provides insulin at $35 per month for each Lilly insulin product. Click here to download your card. The program is meant to work for anyone with commercial/private insurance or without insurance.

Novo Nordisk’s My$99Insulin cash program allows for the purchase of up to three vials or two packs of insulin pens, of any combination of insulins from Novo Nordisk Inc., for $99 per month. The program is meant to work for anyone with commercial/private insurance, with or eligible for Medicare Part D, or without insurance.

Sanofi’s Insulins ValYou Savings Program offers any combination of most Sanofi insulins for $99 per month. This program offers up to 10 boxes of pens and/or 10 mL vials (which can be a mix of long-acting and short-acting as needed) per month. The program is meant to work for anyone without insurance. Sanofi’s copay card programs operate for those with insurance, and can be found on GetInsulin.org.

If you’ve been told your insurance doesn’t cover your other medications, check out our guide on what to do here. If you don’t have insurance right now, learn more about your options here. 

WRITTEN BY Beyond Type 2 Editorial Team, POSTED 06/14/21, UPDATED 11/15/22

This piece was authored collaboratively by the Beyond Type 2 Editorial Team.