Kaine Applauds Committee Passage of Bipartisan Legislation, Including Bill to Cap Insulin Costs

WASHINGTON, D.C. - Today, U.S. Senator Tim Kaine (D-VA), a member of the Senate Health, Education, Labor and Pensions (HELP) Committee, applauded committee passage of the INSULIN Act, legislation that would cap the cost of insulin at $35 per month for those with private insurance and create a pilot program to make insulin more accessible for those without insurance. Kaine, a cosponsor of the legislation, made a statement to the chair during the June 2026 HELP Committee markup urging passage of the bill.

"Far too many Virginians and people throughout the country have to ration their insulin, or even go without it, because of how expensive it is. I am glad that the HELP Committee passed this bipartisan legislation, which will cap insulin prices at $35 a month for people with private insurance and take strides toward making sure those without insurance can afford the insulin they need. I urge all of my colleagues to vote for final passage of this legislation when it comes before the full Senate," said Kaine. "I am also pleased that the HELP Committee passed my bipartisan bill with Senators Cassidy and Tuberville to make the food supply chain safer; legislation containing provisions of my bill with Senator Collins to reauthorize crucial programs that train and prepare health care providers who care for older Americans; and a bill I cosponsored that will marshal the federal government's resources to improve research into epilepsy."

In addition to the INSULIN Act, the HELP Committee passed several other pieces of legislation led or cosponsored by Kaine. The committee passed the:

• Educating Medical Professionals and Optimizing Workforce Efficiency and Readiness (EMPOWER) for Health Act, which contains the text of the Kaine-led Geriatrics Workforce Improvement Act, legislation that would reauthorize programs to train the next generation of providers who care for older adults and help improve access to high-quality care.
• Making America's Food Safer Act, legislation Kaine introduced alongside Senators Bill Cassidy (R-LA) and Tommy Tuberville (R-AL) to increase efficiency in the food supply chain auditing process, improve coordination about risks to food safety between regulators at the federal and state/local levels, and expand the authority of the Secretary of Health and Human Services (HHS) to order the destruction of goods that pose a public health risk (e.g., contaminated foods, illegal vaping products).
• National Plan for Epilepsy Act, of which Kaine is a cosponsor, which directs HHS to establish and carry out a National Plan for Epilepsy to pursue a cure for the disease and improve its prevention, treatment, and diagnosis.

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