MORGANTOWN, W.Va. — Two West Virginia lawmakers and a health care organization are organizing a bus trip to Canada to allow people the opportunity to take advantage of the country’s lower prescription drug costs.
Delegates Barbara Fleischauer, D-Morgantown, and Jordan Hill, R-Nicholas, are organizing the trip with West Virginia Insulin for All, in which the one-day stop is primarily for people who need insulin.
“We’re going to Niagara Falls. It’s under five hours,” Fleischauer said. “We have people from different parts of the state and Virginia that are going to join us. We’re going up and back in a day and we’re going to let people get their insulin up there where it’s much, much cheaper.”
The cost of insulin nearly doubled between 2012 and 2016, as the price for other drugs has also increased.
Adrian Olmstead with West Virginia Insulin for All was diagnosed with Type 1 diabetes in 1985.
“Insulin is as necessary for me as oxygen for any human,” he said.
“In the last 20 years, it’s gotten out of control. In fact, from 2001 to 2018, the price of Humalog insulin — which is the fast-acting insulin that most diabetic people take — has increased 582 percent.”
Fleischauer and Olmstead said they believe the cost of insulin has increased because of the small number of manufacturers.
The trip is planned for early December. Travelers will need a passport to travel to Canada.