Craigieburn’s Michael and Kelly Beswick fight to keep Fiasp insulin affordable

Families battling diabetes such as the Berwicks from Craigieburn face a difficult road ahead if a popular insulin medication is removed from the Pharmaceutical Benefits Scheme.

Coen (left) and Taj Beswick (right) both live with type-1 diabetes. Picture: Adam Daunt

Victorians battling type-1 diabetes fear a proposal to remove a popular insulin from the Pharmaceutical Benefits Scheme will leave them struggling financially in the coming months despite government intervention.

Pharmaceutical company Novo Nordisk wants to delist Fiasp insulin from the PBS, a move that would cause the price of Fiap to skyrocket.

Craigieburn couple Michael and Kelly Beswick say the change will take the cost of Fiasp from $30 a month to $230 a month per child in their family.

Their sons’ Taj and Coen have with type-one diabetes, and according to Ms Beswick, the fast-acting insulin has changed their lives considerably.

The Beswicks’ previous insulin NovoRapid meant they had to wait 30 to 40 minutes after injecting to eat or their blood sugar levels would rise dangerously high.

With Fiasp, Taj and Coen are able to eat almost instantly, offering more relief from spikes or crashes and have better glycaemic control over their levels.

After years of “rollercoaster blood sugar levels”, Taj has dropped from level seven to six as a result of the better control.

“I’d say it was a shock when we found out when it was being removed because we just assumed it would stay on the PBS,” Ms Beswick said.

“It was shock and then upsetting because it worked so well for the boys … it just makes life easier for them.

“To think about going to another insulin where they’ve got to wait again … we’re worried.”

Fiasp insulin which the Beswick boys use. Picture: Adam Daunt

The federal government has announced a supply-only deal which will keep Fiasp on the PBS for six months. Mr and Ms Beswick are stressed about how they can find enough money to keep their sons on the insulin when it does go off the PBS.

It could mean pulling their sons Bodhi and Paden as well as Taj and Coen out of sports and their hobbies or severely limiting their expenses as a one-income family. Taj and Coen run the risk of falling unconscious if they forget to eat after the 30 minute wait time on the old insulin if the family has to revert back to it.

The family has already tried to fill their scripts of Fiasp as much as possible but local pharmacies near them are reporting a low supply as everyone stocks up.

“We worry about the finances of trying to keep them on this insulin but we won’t be able to keep them on this insulin,” Ms Beswick said.

“We’d either have to sacrifice their health or their sports, the swimming, the basketball, or eating out. Anything really to try and keep them on this insulin.”

The Beswick’s are not alone in their struggle. An online petition demanding Fiasp be kept on the PBS has recorded more than 38,000 signatures.

Health Minister Mark Butler has announced Fiasp and Fiasp FlexTouch will stay on the PBS for the next six months beyond the original April 1 deadline.

Under the announcement, people like the Beswicks will be able to refill their scripts and repeat scripts for that period.

“The decision by Novo Nordisk to withdraw Fiasp from the PBS has been deeply disappointing and distressing for Australians living with type-1 diabetes and their families,” he said.

Diabetes Australia Group chief executive Justine Cain welcomed the short-term solution.

“Living with diabetes can be very difficult and people should be able to access the best available insulins and medicines, at an affordable price, to have their best quality of life and reduce the impact of diabetes-related complications,” she said.

Mr and Ms Beswick hope that Fiasp insulin can be kept on the PBS permanently.

([If not) we’re going to have to go back to the old insulin and instead of seeing improvement we’re going to go backwards.”