California Announces $50M Contract With Nonprofit to Make Cheaper Insulin

Gov. Gavin Newsom (D) said Saturday that California plans to cut the cost of insulin by 90 percent through a new collaboration with Civica Rx, a nonprofit generic drugmaker, with an eye towards becoming the first state to produce the life-saving medication for its residents. The contract between Civica Rx and CalRx—a California Department of Health Care Services program—is a 10-year agreement worth $50 million, and covers three forms of insulin: glargine, lispro, and aspart. Pending approval by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration, according to a release from Newsom’s office, a 10-milliliter vial of state-label insulin could soon be offered for no more than $30. Brand-name insulin is sometimes sold for as much as $300 a vial, according to the governor’s office. “This is a big deal, folks,” he said. “This is not happening anywhere else in the United States.”