1829
Insulin (mander.xyz)
you are viewing a single comment's thread
view the rest of the comments
[-] SpikesOtherDog@ani.social 10 points 3 days ago

Insulin is not permanently shelf stable, and will still expire in the fridge.

Diabetics usually start with a long-acting insulin to keep blood sugar from naturally rising plus a fast-acting insulin for corrections and to compensate for food.

The old style of just giving 2 long-acting shots of mixed insulin is mostly obsolete, except for legacy patients, some pregnant patients, and other special cases I can only theorize.

A good number of diabetics only use fast acting insulin in a pump, receiving microdoses every minute.

To switch brands of insulin, much less therapies in any circumstance requires a doctor's visit.

With all that said, the insurance company will often replace a medication in the event of an accident, typically only once a year.

Without that, a patient might be able to find a charity they will assist them.

You also may be able to travel to the next state over where the cost of insulin is regulated.

Failing all other options, it is better to check yourself in to the hospital as your sugar begins to rise and tell them that you cannot control your blood sugar.

[-] nickiwest@lemmy.world 6 points 3 days ago* (last edited 3 days ago)

I don't think I ever had insurance in the US where checking into the hospital for any amount of time would cost less than $800 out of pocket.

Unless I had already reached my annual deductible, that is.

[-] MonkeMischief@lemmy.today 5 points 3 days ago

Unless I had already reached my annual deductible, that is.

"Hey good news! After about 35% of your annual income is spent on medical bills on top of your triple digit monthly premiums... That health insurance starts to kick in!"

(Until it resets at the end of the year. Teehee!)

[-] zeppo@lemmy.world 3 points 3 days ago

The deductible system is ridiculous.

[-] MonkeMischief@lemmy.today 3 points 2 days ago

It truly is amazing how an entire industry makes billions by literally avoiding delivering the most basic service it's paid for at every possible turn.

[-] zeppo@lemmy.world 2 points 1 day ago

The extra ridiculous thing is how they deny services that a doctor says are medically necessary… and not even in a reasonable way, in an abusive way. Like the system that automatically denies 60,000 things an hour or whatever, and count on people wasting tons of time to challenge it. Or when they have an ophthalmologist review your kidney disease and say that some treatment isn’t warranted. And that’s even after you’ve paid your stupid deductible costs for the year.

[-] LH0ezVT@sh.itjust.works 3 points 2 days ago

This is not even good capitalism. Capitalism was intended to provide efficient solutions through competition. This is an oligopol secured by generous bribes

[-] SpikesOtherDog@ani.social 4 points 3 days ago

It's no longer about saving money at that point.

[-] ArcaneSlime@lemmy.dbzer0.com 6 points 3 days ago

Ah well that's good, at least there appears to be some options.

I've heard of clandestine labs making patented insulin and selling it cheap too, and I'm all for a good grey market.

[-] SpikesOtherDog@ani.social 6 points 3 days ago

Not sure about that, and not sure if I could trust that.

Another option is to have the doctor prescribe insulin pens or another brand of the same kind of insulin. It's technically a different prescription and the insurance company usually covers it.

[-] zeppo@lemmy.world 3 points 3 days ago

The subs would be R and NPH, not the old mixed formulas like 70/30.

this post was submitted on 26 Nov 2025
1829 points (99.3% liked)

Science Memes

17472 readers
2150 users here now

Welcome to c/science_memes @ Mander.xyz!

A place for majestic STEMLORD peacocking, as well as memes about the realities of working in a lab.



Rules

  1. Don't throw mud. Behave like an intellectual and remember the human.
  2. Keep it rooted (on topic).
  3. No spam.
  4. Infographics welcome, get schooled.

This is a science community. We use the Dawkins definition of meme.



Research Committee

Other Mander Communities

Science and Research

Biology and Life Sciences

Physical Sciences

Humanities and Social Sciences

Practical and Applied Sciences

Memes

Miscellaneous

founded 2 years ago
MODERATORS