An insulin maker is offering free insulin for 90 days to its diabetic customers who may have lost their job or insurance during the COVID-19 pandemic.
Novo Nordisk announced on April 14 that the coverage will be offered through their diabetes patient assistance program.
Executive Vice President Doug Langa said “The pandemic is taking a serious toll on the nation’s health and economy. Millions of people are losing jobs and health coverage, and that’s especially tragic if you have a chronic disease like diabetes.”
To participate, individuals must provide proper documentation that they lost their healthcare benefits or that they are being offered Consolidated Omnibus Budget Reconciliation Act benefits.
Anyone applying for the program must already have a prescription for Novo Nordisk insulin and meet certain criteria.
Although Novo Nordisk is only free for 90 days the company says if the are denied Medicaid benefits that they can extend through the end of the year.
Langa said “Patients have enough issues to worry about at this moment. We don’t want being able to pay for their insulin to be one of them.”
Novo Nordisk is the most recent manufacturer to help patients during the coronavirus pandemic. At the beginning of April, Eli Lilly announced it was capping the out-of-pocket cost for insulin at $35 during the COVID-19 crisis.
