Illinois House members voted overwhelmingly Wednesday to approve legislation capping out-of-pocket insulin costs for some diabetics.
The House voted 100-13-1 to approve the bill, despite objections that it only helped a limited number of diabetics and didn’t attack the root problem of high drug costs.
The bill must still get another vote in the Senate because of a couple of changes made by the House.
The out-of-pocket expenses a diabetic will pay for insulin costs will be capped at $100 for a month’s supply. The bill does not go into effect until 2021.
The bill does not cap the costs for all diabetics. Those covered by a federally regulated insurance program will not be able to take advantage of the cap. Rep. Will Guzzardi, D-Chicago, said that means people covered by employer health insurance are not affected, nor are Medicare or Medicaid plans. State workers, on the other hand, would be covered because their health plan is regulated by the state. It’s been estimated only about 20 percent of diabetics in Illinois will be affected by the bill.
