Diabetic Californians Turn to Black Market Insulin

A man holds up a Humalog Insulin injection pen in Irvine, Calif., on March 24, 2022. (John Fredricks/The Epoch Times)

“Can you do $40.00?” asked a seller on the app OfferUp to a buyer looking for a bargain.

“$40 works, can you meet up today?” the buyer typed.

One hour later in front of a TGI Friday’s restaurant in Orange, Calif., a man pulled up in his clean black SUV, waving four insulin pens. He took the $40 cash for the insulin, and after a short conversation, he took off and ironically drove past the walls of a jail facility in the direction of his home.

This is considered a “black market insulin” exchange—the purchasing of insulin outside of a pharmacy through a business transaction networked via social media and/or online selling services.

United States law labels the transaction as illegal, due to the distribution of a prescription drug without a license. But since insulin is not classified as a controlled substance, the repercussions of exchanging the medication are murky.

In addition, most sales for insulin must happen quickly before the expiration date passes and it must be discarded, so there is an incentive for those who have extra insulin to try to make sure it gets used.

“Utilizing the black market is a literal lifeline when a diabetic finds themselves in the nightmare of ‘I can’t afford this’ or ’I need access to this type of insulin or medical device … but my insurance is telling me no,'” said type 1 diabetic Whitney Lewis from San Diego to The Epoch Times.

On community exchange sites such as Craigslist and OfferUp, the commonly prescribed Humalog and Lantus insulin pen injectables are typically listed for sale ranging from $30 to $70 per pen by Southern California sellers. Insulin vials of the same medication range from $50 to $100.

In this file photo, diabetic medical supplies are pictured in Irvine, Calif., on March 24, 2022. (John Fredricks/The Epoch Times)

Diabetes Costs

“I woke up in the middle of the night while sleeping on a friend’s couch after being evacuated from a hurricane in New York City,” Robin Cressman told The Epoch Times.

“And then I’m standing in their kitchen in my underwear trying to grab some Indian food or rice or naan or something to fix a low blood sugar.”

Cressman, 37, recently marked her 10-year anniversary of being diagnosed with type 1 diabetes, an autoimmune disorder currently affecting nearly 1.9 million Americans. It prevents the pancreas from producing insulin, a hormone that allows cells to use energy from sugar in the body.

“My friend was getting up for work at the beginning of her day and I’m standing there trying to avoid a medical emergency and avoid going to the hospital,“ said Cressman. ”We deal with some really, really tough stuff.”

Before the discovery of insulin by a team of researchers in the 1920s, type 1 diabetics typically had a swift death sentence.

Companies now manufacture different kinds of insulin, such as slow-acting, which type 1 diabetics inject for 24 hours of insulin regulation, as well as fast-acting insulin, administered before meals and for high blood sugar corrections.

But what was once a relatively affordable life-saving drug has become an extreme financial burden due to sky-rocketing prices in recent decades.

Compared to other developed nations, the United States ranks number one in insulin costs, with people in the U.S. paying around 10 times more than other countries.

Prices in the United States have also rapidly increased. Between the years 1999 and 2019, the cost of one vial of Humalog rose more than 1000 percent, from $21 to $332.

Diabetics in the United States pay around $800 per month for their medical expenses on average, according to the American Diabetes Association.

“Once I was in line at CVS for an hour and the price of my insulin changed three times!” said Lewis, the woman from San Diego. “I left that day paying nearly triple what I normally pay for a vial of insulin. The system is expensive, complicated, dysfunctional, and broken … this is why many utilize community care over ‘health care.’”

Screenshot of a post selling insulin on an app. (John Fredricks/The Epoch Times)

The Black Market

Type 1 diabetics like Laura Pavlakovich are all about “community care,” as she seeks to help other diabetics struggling financially and who have trouble maintaining a steady flow of life-giving insulin.

“The craziest messages are when social media followers say, ’my endocrinologist told me to reach out to you because my insurance will not cover my insulin,'” Pavlakovich told The Epoch Times.

“I get overwhelmed everyday by this.”

Pavlakovich founded You’re Just My Type (YJMT), a Los Angeles-based nonprofit dedicated to strengthening the type 1 diabetic community through inclusive events, social networking, and direct support.

“Nobody living with diabetes should have to do it alone,” Pavlakovich said. “I founded YJMT to create a lasting community and continued support to ensure that nobody has to.”

While connecting the online type 1 diabetic community with the insulin they need, Pavlakovich said she receives more offers to give from diabetics, rather than take.

Screenshot of a post selling insulin on an app. (John Fredricks/The Epoch Times)

“[It’s] amazing seeing the messages of people offering extra supplies,” Pavlakovich said. “That part is overwhelming in a good way.”

Recently, some U.S. Congress members have taken action to limit the monthly out-of-pocket cost of insulin at $35 through various legislative proposals, which have bipartisan support.

Drugmaker Eli Lilly & Co. also rolled out a scheme in 2020 to cap the out-of-pocket cost for insulin at $35 per month.

“We encourage anyone in the U.S, paying more than $35 per monthly prescription to call the Lilly Diabetes Solution Center at [phone] or go to insulinaffordability.com to see what options are available,” a Lilly spokesperson told The Epoch Times.

However, even with these efforts, some American diabetics may still continue to turn to black market insulin exchanges in certain circumstances.

Screenshot of a post on social media asking for insulin. (John Fredricks/The Epoch Times)

“It’s probably very illegal—what I’m doing,” Pavlakovich told The Epoch Times. “But I don’t really care about that part.”

Cressman agreed.

“It’s just a simpler and easier way of giving insulin to diabetics whose lives are already so complex as they are. ... We just need to get the insulin to stay alive,” she said.