Gary Hall Jr. won a gold medal in swimming in the 2000 Olympics but was not deemed healthy enough to buy health insurance because he lives with type 1 diabetes. At a recent Type 1 Diabetes Summit in Marquette, Michigan, Gary, who is consultant for ManKind Corp., stated that now he can buy insurance, but it has become unaffordable.
Like all of us, Gary has other financial obligations. As a divorced father of two, he is supporting 2 households in California. To balance these obligations, he is looking for ways to keeps the cost of type 1 diabetes down, which averages an extra $9,600 a year for people with diabetes.
Gary uses GoodRx to find the lowest cost insulin, which has gone from $20 a vial in 1999 when he was diagnosed to over $200. He also has what many consider an ‘old’ glucose meter and buys Unistrip1™ generic blood glucose test strips, which cost him about 11 cents per strip.
Gary also doesn’t have an insulin pump; he prefers multiple daily injections. Based on his activity and blood glucose levels, he may inject several small doses of insulin in one day. Gary is also okay with testing his blood glucose several times a day to keep it under control. He has a continuous glucose monitor but currently doesn’t use it because of the extra cost involved; his generic testing strips are less expensive for him. It seems to be working for him, he is healthy and his last A1C test was 6.9%.
Gary’s story is all too familiar for those with type 1 diabetes. It’s stories like Gary’s and the story of Alex Smith of Minnesota, who died because he was rationing his insulin, that illustrate the problems within our current healthcare system and drive the need to change our policies. The Type 1 Diabetes Summit in Marquette served as a starting place to do just that. Some members of the Michigan CB located in the Upper Peninsula “UP” of Michigan helped to put this event together and invited local lawmakers to discuss the affordability of diabetes care for people with diabetes in the UP. This was a bipartisan event with a state senator (a Republican) and a state representative (a Democrat, who lives with type 1 diabetes), two lawmakers representing the UP, attending. These lawmakers were able to hear Gary’s story and the story of others and talk with people with diabetes, healthcare providers, and other policymakers about solutions.
One shared goal that came out of the Type 1 Diabetes Summit was to push for an expansion of the Children’s Special Health Care Services program for adults with type 1 diabetes. Designed to help families with the high cost of caring for children with costly health care issues, the Children’s Special Health Care Services program also covers adults with cystic fibrosis or hemophilia. Type 1 diabetes has become too expensive for many and we are delighted that some our UP legislators will help champion the cause for the Michigan adults who live with type 1 diabetes. Hosting this type of summit is a great way to bring different stakeholders, including lawmakers, together to discuss issues and more importantly, start to work towards solutions.