I'll never forget how my grandfather would pinch his belly mid-conversation to expertly inject himself with insulin. He had years of expertise, and four shots a day meant pricking oneself without a thought. Today, though, if my grandpa were alive, he'd be rather cognizant of each needle prick. Not because of pain or fear of the needle, but because each prick would cost a lot more. There's been nearly 46% hike in insulin prices in India since 2018—an over 10% year-on-year hike. And while my sugar-loving grandpa naturally had Type II diabetes, some folks live with the lifelong genetic condition that's Type I. With years of taking the protein that's insulin come years of insulin bills, which are only increasing by the day. A diabetologist in today's story says patients with Type 1 diabetes are best maintained on a combination of two kinds of insulins. “Even as quantities of insulin each patient uses change through years, on average a young Type 1 adult may require 60 units of short-acting and 25-30 units of long-acting insulin every day." Now, if this Type I patient were prescribed Abbott’s insulin products—Tresiba and Ryzodeg—for instance, they'd be coughing up Rs 1 lakh or US$1,300 annually! Pharma companies claim that the serial 10% year-on-year increase in certain forms of insulin was to “adjust for annual inflation”. India’s annual inflation has hovered between 5-6% for the last two years and has been on the rise since January 2022. It stood at 6.95% in March. It also doesn't help that the insulin market is in the iron grip of the big three—Eli Lilly, Novo Nordisk, and Sanofi—who control the market both by value and by volume. While Biocon and Wockhardt have launched cheaper biosimilar insulins in the long-acting category, the big three flood the market, leaving the rest little market share. This ultimately affects those who just cannot afford insulin, and yet, need it desperately. Not just in India but in all low- and middle-income countries, where three in four diabetics live. The MMS details this dichotomy by diving deep into the different kinds of insulin and how they stack up against each other
