Senators press insurers for reams of pricing and rebate info on insulin

As tensions persist over the cost of insulin, two U.S. senators want three of the nation’s largest health insurers to provide a raft of data about pricing, rebates, and plan coverage.

In each case, Aetna (AET), Anthem (ANTM), and UnitedHealthcare (UNH) are being asked to fork over information about the effect that rebates have on their insulin spending, how rebates from drug makers may reduce expenses for beneficiaries, and the relationship between insulin pricing and what patients pay at pharmacies, among other things.

“The number of Americans living with diabetes is expected to double by 2030 and related health care costs are expected to increase by more than 50 percent,” Sen. Susan Collins (R-Maine) and Sen. Jeanne Shaheen (D-N.H.) wrote on Wednesday to the insurers. “Unfortunately, skyrocketing prescription drug prices continue to burden Americans, making access to needed therapies unaffordable.”

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