Eli Lilly CEO David Ricks told CNBC June 29 that the drugmaker will look for new ways to cut insulin prices in the face of competition from Walmart, which launched its own private label insulin at nearly half the price of Eli Lilly's.
The analog insulin Walmart developed with Novo Nordisk will cost about $73 per vial or $86 for a package of prefilled insulin pens. Eli Lilly's generic version of insulin costs $137.35 per vial, according to CNBC.
Mr. Ricks told CNBC he welcomes the competition from Walmart and that Eli Lilly will look at "further options" to reduce insulin prices.
"If we can reach one more patient with more affordable insulin, we're going to try to do that," he said.
He also pointed to two efforts from Eli Lilly to lower costs for people with diabetes, such as launching a half-price generic version of its insulin called insulin lispro in 2019, as well as capping out-of-pocket costs for insulin at $35 per month, CNBC reported.
Eli Lilly has faced criticism from politicians in both parties over its insulin prices.
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