Diabetes prevalence in the United States is at near-epidemic proportions: according to the CDC, over 37.3 million Americans have diabetes. That’s 11.3 percent of the U.S. population.
The CDC also estimates that direct medical costs to treat diabetes are over $230 billion each year.
Worst of all, diabetes hits hardest among those least able to afford these costs. Those below the poverty level have the highest incidence of diabetes; as wealth increases the probability of a person having diabetes declines.
In an interview with VeryWell Health, diabetes educator Dr. Stephanie Redmond, PharmD, described the situation: “Prices are too high. Not just for insulin but for most diabetes medications. All of it is still insanely expensive.”
These costs have a direct impact on health outcomes.
A recent study found that one in four patients underused insulin due to cost concerns—and these same patients had worse outcomes as measured in terms of glycemic control, a key measure in assessing diabetes.
Per the American Diabetes Association’s 2023 Standards of Care, a typical diabetes patient could require the following medications and supplies in a typical month:
- 90 glucose test strips
- 4 GLP-1 inhibitor injector pens
- 30 glucose tablets
- 5 long-acting insulin pens
- 2 rapid-acting insulin vials
When filling prescriptions for these drugs and supplies, the retail cost at a major pharmacy chain can be over $830 a month.
RxLink can reduce these costs
RxLink compares multiple discount programs and manufacturer co-pay offers to give patients the lowest price. For the drugs and items listed above, using RxLink discounts at the same pharmacy reduced the monthly cost to $471.
That’s a 43% savings that can amount to $4,300 a year. That’s not only a significant amount that can improve the overall living standards of a patient, it can also drive better compliance and outcomes.
It’s simple for health systems and employers to provide patients and employees with this kind of savings via RxLink. The program is automatically delivered by SMS. Best of all, these benefits are delivered at no cost to the RxLink partner or the patient.
E-mail us at info@rxlink.com learn more about how RxLink can bring substantial savings and better health outcomes to your patients or employees!
Example savings assume prescriptions are filled at CVS Pharmacy in zip 19460. Monthly supplies for treatment in the example include: 90 count iGlucose Test Strips, 4 Trulicity pens (0.75 mg/0.5mL), 30 generic 4g glucose tablets, 2 vials of Humalog (10 mL, 100 units/mL), 5 Novolog Pens (3 ml, 100 units/mL). Total CVS retail price for a 1 month supply: $834.38 ($10,012.56 annually.) CVS price using RxLink discounts for a 1 month supply: $470.87. ($5,650.44 annually.) Details for each item available upon request.