Diabetics don't want generic insulin because it is slow acting and difficult to control. It takes a long time to start working and then a long time to stop, making dangerous highs and lows more likely.
Generic fast-acting insulin is now legal because patents have expired. But generic insulin is still quite expensive in the US.
I sure do. I use Humalog now and it's out of patent. There just isn't a generic available for it because it's just not all that cost effective to do. Creating and producing a generic for biologics (like insulins) is not simple like it is for simple chemicals. As I understand it, they need to undergo trials and the like, which drastically raises the price of creating them.
Sorry, I meant to say that diabetics don't want the slow-acting generic insulin Walmart sells, which the parent was discussing (except as a last resort). My wife is type 1 diabetic.
Both short acting and long acting insulin is available as genetics. However the newer insulin’s allow for better control - that’s why diabetics want it.
But regardless, how does that change my argument?
Why is CA getting into generic insulin manufacturing when they could just have someone who knows what they are doing make it?
Evidently, according to the article, the plan is to contract with a drug manufacturer (so, "someone who knows what they are doing"). Since any new generic has to go through trials, I guess the state would put up the money for this.
By "make it" I mean all the way to finished product. There is a ton of expense and time to create a biosimilar insulin, not just clinical trials, but regulatory approvals and updates, safety monitoring.
Why not just find an existing seller and negotiate some pricing deal and then subsidize it for people in CA?
Generic fast-acting insulin is now legal because patents have expired. But generic insulin is still quite expensive in the US.