On Wednesday, May 6, U.S. Senator for New Hampshire, Jeanne Shaheen, made an appearance at the Jean School of Nursing and Health Sciences as part of her “Affordability Action Tour.”
Upon her arrival to the Jean School, Senator Shaheen was given a tour of the state-of-the-art simulation labs alongside College President, Joseph Favazza. Members of the Saint Anselm Nursing Faculty greeted Senator Shaheen after her tour, and the Senator graciously shook hands and introduced herself to everyone. Many nursing professors then joined Senator Shaheen for a productive roundtable discussion, which focused on the topic of insulin affordability. Also in attendance at the roundtable were healthcare leaders from hospitals around the Manchester area, as well as members of the surrounding community who have experienced the effects of type 1 diabetes first-hand.
As co-chair of the U.S. Senate Diabetes Caucus, Senator Shaheen has been working toward making her bipartisan Insulin Act a reality for Americans struggling with type 1. This legislation would help make insulin more accessible by capping the monthly out-of-pocket cost of insulin at $35 for Americans with insurance. The bill would also create a pilot program to provide insulin at the same price to the uninsured.
“As most of you here know, this is a disease that is increasing,” stated Shaheen. “It is the most expensive chronic illness that we have, and it is expected to affect about one in three individuals by 2050 if we aren’t able to change the trajectory. So, not only is it a personal issue for me, but it’s really a policy issue also. We need to think about how we should address it, and the Insulin Act is an effort to try and address the high cost of insulin, which is unaffordable for too many people in this country.”
In addition to Senator Shaheen sharing her insight on the political aspect of type 1, other participants in the discussion shared personal experiences, highlighting challenges like food insecurity, insurance recertification, and the emotional toll that comes with managing diabetes. They emphasized the need for increased diabetes education hours, better insurance coverage for new medical devices, and more preventative screening.
Dr. Carrie MacLeod, Interim Dean of the Jean School, was also present at the roundtable, where she shared some of her own perspectives on the hidden ramifications of poorly managed type 1 diabetes. “As someone that predominantly worked in cardiac surgery, I saw the effects [of type 1] on every system in the body, and to add in not being able to afford your insulin and prevent some of those ramifications is detrimental. If we can implement something like [the Insulin Act], we will continue to see an impact across generations, and in the long term it’s a lot more cost effective,” said Dr. MacLeod.
The discussion concluded with a call to action from Senator Shaheen, as she thanked everyone in attendance for their time and input and asked for their continued advocacy to help pass the Insulin Act.
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