(WatchDogReport.org) – California’s Democratic Governor Gavin Newsom recently vetoed legislation that would have stopped insurance firms from charging more than $35 for insulin. According to reports, this legislation would have officially banned disability insurance policies and health plans from imposing additional costs for insulin prescription drugs beyond $35 for a monthly supply. That would have encompassed co-payments and deductibles.
Earlier this year, the Democratic leader said that the so-called Golden State will start creating its own brand of insulin. California currently has a $50 million contract with Civica Rx, considered one of the most essential non-profit pharmaceutical companies in the United States. Newsom said both would manufacture the “CalRx” insulin and noted that California would sell a 10-mm vial for only $30.
In a statement, Newsom explained he decided to veto this legislation because the state would be able to get at the “underlying cost” with CalRx, which he described as the best and most “sustainable solution” to expensive pharmaceuticals. The governor also criticized copayments, saying that the enduring expenses will always be transferred to consumers in the form of increased health plans when these are implemented.
State Democratic Senator Scott Wiener, who was the one who crafted the legislation, said in a news release that the governor’s veto was a grave mistake that will have serious consequences. He claimed that what Newsom did was a “major setback” that will affect tens of thousands of people who suffer from diabetes in California, as this will trap them in the “terrible choice” between buying food or insulin.
Wiener, who is from San Francisco, also said that Newsom’s decision to veto this legislation was a missed opportunity that will eventually force these people to wait years before the high medical care expenses could go down. He added this was unnecessary, as people could have been able to acquire their insulin “immediately.”
Copyright 2023, WatchDogReport.org
