A bill to help Oklahomans be better able to afford their insulin will soon be on the governor’s desk after receiving final passage from the Senate. House Bill 1019, by Sen. Frank Simpson, R-Ardmore, caps the price for a 30-day supply of insulin to $30 and $90 for a 90-day supply for each covered prescription. Currently, copays are based on individual insurance plans.

“Approximately 200,000 Oklahomans have Type I diabetes, requiring daily usage of insulin. Unfortunately, because of continually increasing prices, many diabetics ration their insulin or go without, putting their health and lives at further risk,” Simpson said. “This is a commonsense approach that has already been approved in several other states.”

Simpson has long advocated for Oklahoma’s diabetic community after losing his granddaughter to complications related to Type 1 diabetes.

More than 450,000 Oklahoma adults suffer from diabetes with over one million more having prediabetes according to the American Diabetes Association (ADA). Diabetes is the seventh leading cause of death in Oklahoma, giving the state the fourth highest age-adjusted diabetes death rate in the nation. Diabetes is the leading cause of blindness, amputation, heart disease, kidney failure and early death—all of which is preventable with proper management.