Eli Lilly is introducing a unique insulin pen named the Memoir. It is the first on the market with a memory device to track doses administered. It is designed for use with Lilly's top-selling insulin, Humalog.
The battery-operated pen uses a computer chip to remember the last 16 insulin doses. And while insulin pens are popular in Europe and Asia, only about 800,000 of the 4 million U.S. diabetics who take injections use a pen-- most use syringes. It won't be too surprising if insurers and patients balk at the $100 sticker price for the pen alone. There is a separate fee for the insulin cartridges. I agree, it's a little pricey. Lilly plans to ignite the marketing campaign by offering a $45 coupon. Good start. This pen has been under development for seven years. Lilly plans to introduce two other pens this year to increase Humalog demand. I've got an idea (since nobody asked, but I was a former user). I traded up to Apidra because I became irate every time Humalog clogged my infusion set for my pump. Go back to the drawing board with that quandary while I'll work on my honey do list for product development.
Neither here nor there - my point is this: Eli Lilly you can be everything you want to be if you listen to your customers. The number of insulin-taking diabetics is rising along with the bar on product ingenuity. It's game day, Eli Lilly. I have more ideas to help bring out your A-game. Stay tuned...
Blood sugar testing is part of the daily grind when it comes to diabetes management. Albeit important, it is also the main frustration of my diabetic control. Yes, it only takes all of thirty seconds, start to finish. But I tend to think, each and every time, that's thirty seconds I'll never get back. And then I do the mental math for recreational torture: 4 tests a day, 30 seconds each, 365 days a year, 20 years...you get the idea. I'd like to review two options that might offer some remedy from the inconvenience of glucose testing: the glucowatch, and the artificial pancreas.
