Sanofi ending its Afrezza partnership with Mannkind

You need not worry. Afrezza should capture a large part of the market, not all of the market. There are many people, asthmatics, smokers, COPD who cannot use inhaled insulin. I just hope we have a choice. Sanofi has destroyed the Afrezza launch and Mannkind is running out of money. They should be sued.

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We are paying out of pocket, $150 a box (Sanofi had a price cut card). Yes, we are willing to pay. But we must get Tier 2 coverage and we must get endos to prescribe for all diabetics.

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Iā€™m voting with my feet when it comes to sanofiā€” I am switching from lantus to tresiba. Sanofi will never again profit from my illness in one hand while attempting to screw the world out of afrezza with the other.

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Yes. All good comments. We had a similar breakthrough in pulmonary diagnosis equipment. The company failed because expenditure should have been for research to convince physicians that the product both worked and was easier. Physicians donā€™t go out on a limb and try things. They look to leading physicians. There was no convincing physicians. Another interesting point is that intravenous injection would have the same activity curve rapid onset out of system quickly. I canā€™t bring myself to seriously consider intravenous insulin. Thereā€™d be a learning curve. Thereā€™d be some drawbacks pun intended.

Iā€™ve not seen anything but pure speculation in online conversations that this would be the caseā€¦ I would have to assume that if it were safe, practical, and effective weā€™d have all been doing it for decades since we can buy R insulin for almost nothingā€¦

I must be brain dead. Afrezza competes with Sanofiā€™s own product, the fastest insulin on the market BEFORE Afrezza, the injectable insulin Apidra, which my DD has been using almost as soon as it came out. Looks like Little Red Riding Hood sold her basket of goodies to the Big Bad Wolf. Donā€™t know what Al Mann was thinking when he went into partnership with the devil, but I know he was in dire financial straights when he did so. I will not give this company any more of my money. If Afrezza goes out of business I will switch to Novoā€™s new faster acting insulin the MOMENT it hits the market. Would I sell a better product to one of itā€™s direct main competitors? Donā€™t think soā€¦ Itā€™s all about the almighty dollar.

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Not having to count carbs and worry about spikes or lows, especially for new meals, is amazing. But Afrezza canā€™t work as a basal insulin. If cost were no object, yeah, I would use Afrezza along with pump/CGM but as it stands, I would have to take on an extra copay for Afrezza. If I were MDI, the cost might not be so bad because I can replace my short-acting insulin copay with an Afrezza copay but on a pump, Afrezza adds a new copay to my existing medical costs. And this is before considering the full potential of Artificial Pancreas pump/CGM systems which may side-line Afrezza even more.

Hi Sam19. This is my first post although Iā€™ve been reading this forum for quite a while. I REALLY appreciate your posts. I am a significantly insulin resistant Type 2 and have been using Afrezza since last July. It is the ONLY mealtime insulin I have ever used that has worked for me. It is a superior, fantastically effective prandial insulin. I am PRAYING that Afrezza survives even if MNKD the company fails. MNKD the Company is in great danger of bankruptcy. Again, I PRAY its insulin survives no matter what happens to MNKD.

About the only you ever said that I disagree with is about insurance coverage. Very, very few plans cover Afrezza in an affordable, accessible way. Personally, I have little money, almost ā€œpoorā€. After my mortgage payment and the cost of food and groceries, just one box per month of Afrezza at $300.99 is my biggest expense. Entirely out of pocket for me. Two years ago I got my insurance via Obamacare, a godsend for me. I only had three or choices of insurance companies and NONE of them covere Afrezza at all. Not on the formulary of any of them. Last year my income dropped and I was forced into State Medicaid. My doctor submitted an application for me but it was denied since Humalog was cheaper. Injected prandial insulin does not work for me, too slow (several hours).

Although I have little money, I am still spending $300 per month because I realize I am talking about my very life!!! In my eyes Afrezza is my most important expense.

Sadly I really need at least two boxes of Afrezza per month but that is out of the question for me financially. I am two years away from Medicare and hoping it will be covered by thenā€¦ but I doubt it will be. I try to make do by eating as low carb as I can possibly stand.

MNKD could quintuple its volume of scripts sold by cutting the price in half. They need to do that. Please keep up your good work of helping to educate diabetics about Afrezza. I believe for all you Type 1ā€™s it really is almost miraculous. And even for us highly insulin resistant Type 2ā€™s, it is an extremely effective mealtime insulin.

I appeal to all diabetics to consider trying it and doing what they can to help ensure the survival of this fantastic insulin. It IS life changing and will be a crime if it is shelved by corrupted, big money financial interests.

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Eddie - AWESOME to hear and Iā€™m sorry about the cost for you. Sam and I are extremely lucky to have our insurance cover Afrezza. We have joked that we may start stock piling it . . . LOL, but then we have to worry about shelf life!!!

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Sanofi is not the devil in this detail. In fact, they are the reason the product is on your shelf right now! MannKind will have trouble finding a new ā€œpartnerā€ I think because the product did not fill the need (the reasons are endless so just bing it) and they donā€™t have the chops to market because they donā€™t know diddly about diabetes. The doom and gloom posts that keep popping up are not going to help with keeping this powder available. Looks like the actual inhalers are a small number after 6 months of availability (again - bing for the reasons).

Iā€™d drop out of selling stuff that was costing me rather than providing any earnings. And I wouldnā€™t blame MannKind for whatever decision they need to make. Better get some more while theyā€™re hot - LOL

You should look into the discount card from Sanifi (if itā€™s still available) - that might help somewhat, if you can get it.

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Thank you mikep! I must admit, Iā€™m surprised Afrezza isnā€™t selling better even though it really only has word of mouth for advertising.

Insurance coverage is a killer. Spirometry and poor label donā€™t help either.

It would be such a tragedy for Afrezza to vanish forever.

I did request the discount from Sanofi. They turned me down since I was in Medicaidā€¦ even though Medicaid wonā€™t cover it for me. According to Sanofi being in Medicaid rendered me ineligible for their discount program. Not sure I understand the logic of that.

Pm me your address, Eddie-- Iā€™ll mail you a discount card. You need it more than I do it sounds.

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[quote=ā€œSam19, post:76, topic:50253, full:trueā€]
Pm me your address, Eddie-- Iā€™ll mail you a discount card. You need it more than I do it sounds.
[/quote]Wow, I think we could probably add this to one of the reasons Saanofi is ending itā€™s partnership with this product. When the DOC starts mailing prescription discount to each other, itā€™s just worrisome. Sure, why not screw the current product sales program/jprotocol. BTW Iā€™m not a huge fan of rules, but some of them have a reason. .

Fine, Eddie send me your address and Iā€™ll send you cash instead because karen57 doesnā€™t approve of me gifting you my own personal discount card which I donā€™t need.

For some reason I do not think she would mind as much if I sent you a discount card for Lantus.

My motivations lie with improving the lives of people struggling with diabetes. Thatā€™s been the point all along why Iā€™ve been trying to tell you all how much this can improve your lives. Whysome, with no interest in this topic, have chosen to do nothing but argue about makes absolutely no sense to me.

Sanofi is a $106 billion dollar French corporation. Eddie canā€™t afford the insulin that I know from experience can tremendously improve his life. Iā€™m happy to help him.

I really donā€™t understand the motivations of a lot of the people weighing inā€¦

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Sam19, a thousand thank yous for your kindness. But, Sanofi wonā€™t honor a discount card for me since Iā€™m covered under Medicaid. At least thatā€™s what they told me last summer.

I think if you have a card in hand and youā€™re paying cash, it will workā€¦ Whether or not they were willing to send you one themselves might be a different story.

Iā€™m sorry Iā€™m a dope but how do I do a PM on this board?

Click on my name then I think youā€™ll see an option to message