Hi there! I’m Michaéla, and I’m one of the folks who sends you emails and texts from the DNC. But today I’m coming to you in my own voice to talk about something very different -- President Biden’s advocacy on insulin pricing.

Three years ago, a few months shy of my 25th birthday, I found myself in the emergency room after receiving a scary phone call from my primary care physician who was gravely concerned about some test results. After several terrifying hours in the hospital, doctors gave me the news: I was one of the 1.6 million people in the US living with type 1 diabetes -- an autoimmune condition that destroys the body’s ability to produce insulin.

When I received the diagnosis, my first thought -- after my immediate and long-term health -- was the financial burden. I was two years out of college and living on a pretty modest salary. How would I ever be able to afford to keep myself alive as an insulin-dependent diabetic?

I was incredibly lucky to have great health insurance that has made living as a diabetic pretty manageable. That said, I’ll never shake the feeling of fear I had in those early days, wondering how I’d possibly afford rent and groceries and insulin.

That’s why it meant so much to me when President Biden called on insulin manufacturers to cap the cost at $35/month. The price of insulin has gone up 1000% in the past 30 years. Yes, you read that right: one thousand percent. Every month when I pick up my insulin from the pharmacy, I check the list price on the box -- it’s $2,600, and I can’t help but think about folks who don’t have the luxury of good insurance to foot the bill.

Earlier this month, Eli Lilly, one of the three largest manufacturers of insulin, announced they’d cap the out-of-pocket cost of their insulin at $35/month. And just last week, Novo Nordisk and Sanofi, two other insulin manufacturers, said they would reduce prices as well.

Make no mistake: These changes were a direct result of President Biden calling on drug manufacturers to lower insulin prices for everyone after Democrats passed the Inflation Reduction Act to cap insulin costs for seniors on Medicare.

It’s moments like these where I’m proudest to be a member of the Democratic Party -- the party that’s been fighting to make health care more affordable for Americans since the Affordable Care Act thirteen years ago. It is because of supporters like you who helped elect Joe Biden in 2020 that we have a president who is so invested in the issues that matter most.

Thanks for reading, and thanks for being a part of this team!

Michaéla

Michaéla Finneran
Email & SMS Strategist
Democratic National Committee

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