A suit was filed in the U.S. District Court for the District of Minnesota by Pharmaceutical Research and Manufacturers of America (PhRMA) to block Minnesota's Alec Smith Insulin Affordability Act. The law in question is named for an uninsured 26-year-old diabetic who died in 2017 of complications from rationing his insulin because he couldn't afford the medicine and related supplies after aging off his mother's health insurance.
Under the law, people with diabetes who can't afford the essential medicine will be able to get 30-day supplies with no more than a $35 co-pay. A separate income-based program is established for those with needs that extend beyond that. Drug makers are required to participate. If they don't, they would face a series of escalating fines.
State Sen. Matt Little, a member of the Minnesota Democratic–Farmer–Labor Party (DFL), decried the move as "morally bankrupt" and "devoid of humanity." In a tweet, Little also vowed: "I will spend my entire life fighting these soulless companies. No one should get sick or die from an inability to afford life-sustaining insulin."
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