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Utahns rally at the State Capitol for over-the-counter access to insulin

A person administering insulin to an adolescent in their leg.
Picture Alliance/Getty Images
A medical assistant administers insulin to an adolescent patient who has Type 1 diabetes. Cigna's pharmacy benefit manager, Express Scripts, says it covers 1.4 million people who take insulin.

Utahns rallied at the steps of the State Capitol on Saturday for better access to insulin, a drug which is essential for people with diabetes to live but still has unnecessary barriers for Utahns to access.

Insulin users hoped to find a solution in H.B. 178, Pharmacy Practice Modifications, a Utah statute that went into effect this year and expands on the list of drugs that a pharmacist in Utah can prescribe.

The Utah #insulin4all Chapter, which organized the rally, supported the statute because they believed insulin would be on that list of pharmacist-prescribed drugs, allowing insulin users to purchase it over the counter after getting a primary diagnosis, but it has yet to be added. With support from T1 International, the Utah Chapter hoped to put pressure on the Utah Board of Pharmacy with this rally to add insulin to the list.

Duck is a general reporter and weekend announcer at UPR, and is studying broadcast journalism and disability studies at USU. They grew up in northern Colorado before moving to Logan in 2018, so the Rocky Mountain life is all they know. Free time is generally spent with their dog, Monty, listening to podcasts, reading or wishing they could be outside more.