The Corner Booth

Illustration by @llnere Have you ever imagined playing a being from outer space, flying around the far reaches of the galaxy, all while managing your type 1 diabetes (T1D) under a heavy load of prosthetics and makeup? Leave it to Noah Averbach-Katz , the New York-based 30-something actor who landed the role of the flaxen-haired, blue-skinned character Ryn on the third season of TV show "Star Trek: Discovery" streaming on CBS All Access. He's been living with T1D since 2003, when he was in eighth grade. He also happens to be married to fellow Discovery actor Mary Wiseman , who plays red-haired fan-fave character Ensign Tilley. The two met at the prestigious Juilliard School for performing arts. As a self-pronounced Trekkie since childhood, Averbach-Katz says being on the show is a dream come true and a career highlight. Fun fact: He originally auditioned for the legendary character Spock (famously played by the late Leonard Nimoy in the original 1970s ...

  Despite political claims to the contrary, insulin prices are not dropping as a result of President Donald Trump's actions leading up to the presidential election of 2020. Insulin certainly isn't "as cheap as water," as Trump claimed during the presidential debate in late September. His executive orders are controversial and symbolic at best. The underground exchange or "black market" continues to grow, accelerated by the COVID-19 crisis and patients who once relied on insulin from outside the United States. States continue to pass insulin co-pay cap legislation, and California became the first to allow for its own generic insulin development. Insulin prices continue to dominate the national discussion and remain a divisive topic in the midst of the political debate over drug pricing policy reform. The common understanding is that U.S. insulin prices have been jacked up to an unconscionable level and that needs to change, but t...

Minnesota advocate Nicole Smith-Holt, who lost her son due to insulin rationing, was taken into custody after defying police orders about blocking traffic during a Sept. 14 insulin rally in Indianapolis. Grassroots group T1International is organizing protest rallies and vigils for victims of the Insulin Pricing Crisis around the country. T1International also held a dynamic workshop to teach patients how to be effective advocates with Pharma, lawmakers and more . A new documentary film, "Pay or Die," will highlight the human cost of outrageous insulin prices in America. Even before the candlelight vigil and rally protesting high insulin prices began, advocate Nicole Smith-Holt from Minnesota planned to break the law as an act of civil disobedience. She knew she would be confronted by police, and likely end up being taken into custody.  That’s exactly what happened in front of the Eli Lilly headquarters in Indianapolis on Sept. 14, as Nicole gathered with more than 100 others i...

Thinking about Congressional hearings on the current Insulin Pricing Crisis, your first instinct may be to roll your eyes and clench your fists. But hold on a moment... What we're seeing on Capitol Hill now may be something new, Folks. We've reached a point where these Congressional hearings go beyond typical policy jargon to include intrigue and human drama that evokes hints of The Godfather, Robin Hood , and binge-worthy hits like Game of Thrones . After all, we're talking about people literally dying out there after rationing insulin because of unaffordability and lack of access. OK, the GoT comparison may seem a bit extreme, but it actually came up in last week's two days of hearing on April 9-10. I was absolutely glued to the screen, in  popcorn status , on the edge of my seat in suspense -- as I followed the 2.5-hour hearing before a House investigational subcommittee on Wednesday. Before this panel were six people: three representing the Big Three Insulin Manufa...

 If state lawmakers do what our Diabetes Community needs them to, 2019 could be a banner year on the issue of drug and insulin pricing transparency. That doesn't necessarily mean we'll see a direct price drop for insulin. But the first step in addressing any problem is admitting there is one, and setting the stage for actually dealing with it effectively. We've seen a handful of legislative efforts across various states in recent years, following Nevada's mid-2017 law that marked the first bill of its kind focusing specifically on diabetes prices. Now the drumbeat is growing louder, with increased media coverage and the grassroots #insulin4all effort making waves nationwide; more state legislators are raising the topic and introducing so-called "sunshine bills" aimed at insulin prices. It's refreshing to see both big and small groups be a part of this effort, even if they don't always agree on exact messaging or methods. The more story-sh...

The world changed for Nicole Smith-Holt when she lost her son Alec in June 2017, just a few weeks after his 26th birthday. He had been living with type 1 diabetes for two years, but the Minnesota mom learned after the fact that he'd been unable to afford his insulin, was rationing what he had, and despite the signs recognized only in hindsight, he tragically died from the effects of diabetic ketoacidosis. Now Nicole is sharing Alec's story across the world. She's spoken with small and large media outlets including People magazine, and her son's story has even prompted rock star Bret Michaels (who lives with T1D himself) to take notice and vow to do what he can to raise awareness on the crisis of skyrocketing insulin prices. Nicole is also pushing for first-of-its-kind legislation in Minnesota to curb those costs, and wants to see the same happen at the federal level. Her advocacy comes at a time when the backlash against insulin and drug pricing is hitt...