Last week, the Arkansas Attorney General filed a lawsuit against drug manufacturers for gouging prices on insulin for diabetes patients.Megan Delco's husband, Brad, and five-year-old son, Teddy, both live with Type 1 diabetes.Delco said the high prices for life-saving medicines can be devastating for patients in Arkansas."Living with Type 1 diabetes is a 24/7, relentless disease and it never stops," she said. "What these people live with every day is you're basically just fighting for your life and to stay alive, and the only way to stay alive is with insulin. Insulin is their lifeline, and without it, they probably wouldn't even make it a week.” According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, around 400,000 adults in Arkansas have diabetes, and those Arkansans paid an estimated $2.2 billion in medical expenses in 2017."Why can we not give Arkansans or people all over the world living with type one, give them a lifeline, so maybe then they have a chance to afford these quote-unquote 'luxury' items that aren't luxury items?" Delco asked.When she heard about the attorney general's lawsuit, Delco said she felt relieved."I finally felt like we were being heard. I finally felt like someone is taking the stand to look at this and look at especially for Arkansans and for Arkansas and see the price jump like it has and someone looking at that and seeing that it's not OK," she said.Teddy has his dad to guide him through living with Type 1 diabetes, and even though he's five, he has started giving himself his insulin injections."I have to answer the heartbreaking question that he asked daily, which is, 'Mom, why do I have diabetes? Why do I have this?' And he doesn't ask it in an angry way, or a sad way. He just wants to try to understand why this is happening to him. Those are big things for a five-year-old to process, really big things," Delco said.Delco is hopeful for a future where insulin is accessible and affordable for everyone who needs it."It's not a left issue. It's not a right issue. It's a human rights issue," she said.Delco said her family is lucky and can afford insulin, but she said one single vial of insulin is about $400 in Arkansas and the prices of the medicine has increased by 60% since 2013.Click here to learn more about the symptoms of Type 1 and Type 2 Diabetes.
BENTONVILLE, Ark. — Last week, the Arkansas Attorney General filed a lawsuit against drug manufacturers for gouging prices on insulin for diabetes patients.
Megan Delco's husband, Brad, and five-year-old son, Teddy, both live with Type 1 diabetes.
Delco said the high prices for life-saving medicines can be devastating for patients in Arkansas.
"Living with Type 1 diabetes is a 24/7, relentless disease and it never stops," she said. "What these people live with every day is you're basically just fighting for your life and to stay alive, and the only way to stay alive is with insulin. Insulin is their lifeline, and without it, they probably wouldn't even make it a week.”
According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, around 400,000 adults in Arkansas have diabetes, and those Arkansans paid an estimated $2.2 billion in medical expenses in 2017.
"Why can we not give Arkansans or people all over the world living with type one, give them a lifeline, so maybe then they have a chance to afford these quote-unquote 'luxury' items that aren't luxury items?" Delco asked.
When she heard about the attorney general's lawsuit, Delco said she felt relieved.
"I finally felt like we were being heard. I finally felt like someone is taking the stand to look at this and look at especially for Arkansans and for Arkansas and see the price jump like it has and someone looking at that and seeing that it's not OK," she said.
Teddy has his dad to guide him through living with Type 1 diabetes, and even though he's five, he has started giving himself his insulin injections.
"I have to answer the heartbreaking question that he asked daily, which is, 'Mom, why do I have diabetes? Why do I have this?' And he doesn't ask it in an angry way, or a sad way. He just wants to try to understand why this is happening to him. Those are big things for a five-year-old to process, really big things," Delco said.
Delco is hopeful for a future where insulin is accessible and affordable for everyone who needs it.
"It's not a left issue. It's not a right issue. It's a human rights issue," she said.
Delco said her family is lucky and can afford insulin, but she said one single vial of insulin is about $400 in Arkansas and the prices of the medicine has increased by 60% since 2013.
Click here to learn more about the symptoms of Type 1 and Type 2 Diabetes.
