You can be on Entrepreneur’s cover!

Novo Nordisk Slashes Insulin Prices, Following Eli Lilly's Lead These moves follow the passing of the 2022 Inflation Reduction Act capping insulin at $35 per month.

By Steve Huff

entrepreneur daily
Joe Raedle | Getty Images

In response to increasing pressure over high drug prices, Denmark-based pharmaceutical company Novo Nordisk has announced a reduction of up to 70% in the sticker prices of several insulin products, effective at the beginning of 2024.

According to a New York Times report, a vial of the company's rapid-acting NovoLog will drop to $72 from $289. Novo Nordisk and Eli Lilly also stated they would reduce the list prices of their most commonly prescribed insulin products by 70% in the fourth quarter of 2023. Novo Nordisk did not address any possible changes to out-of-pocket costs for diabetes patients.

Increased prices for insulin, essential for millions of diabetes patients, have long been a point of contention. As Reuters notes, more than 8 million of the 37 million US diabetes sufferers use insulin, according to the American Diabetes Association. However, as pharmacy benefit managers continue to obtain more significant rebates, the impact of manufacturers' price cuts like these may be limited. In addition, Novo has little to lose by cutting prices since it will avoid paying substantial rebates to the US government Medicaid program starting in 2024.

US President Joe Biden commended Novo's move and encouraged other manufacturers to follow suit, though the financial impact remains uncertain. Sanofi, another insulin manufacturer, declined to comment on whether it would limit out-of-pocket costs.

Steve Huff

Entrepreneur Staff

Want to be an Entrepreneur Leadership Network contributor? Apply now to join.

Editor's Pick

Business News

From Tom Brady to Kevin O'Leary – See Who Lost Big in the Wake of the FTX Crypto Collapse

The crash exposed an $8 billion hole in FTX's accounts, leaving investors and customers scrambling to recoup their funds.

Business News

This Highly-Debated Piece of Cinematic History Just Sold For Over $700,000 at Auction

The wood panel from "Titanic" is often mistaken as a door. Either way, he couldn't have fit. (Sorry.)

Business News

Mark Zuckerberg Says This CEO Is the 'Taylor Swift' of Tech

Meta's CEO posed with Nvidia CEO Jensen Huang on Instagram Wednesday.

Fundraising

Avoid These 9 Pitch Deck Mistakes When Asking Others For Money

Crafting an efficient pitch deck requires serious effort, but at least it's not wandering in the dark since certain rules are shaped by decades of relationships between startups and investors.