Summary
Limited physical availability of various forms of insulin, and its concomitant high price, is a global health concern, particularly in low- and middle-income countries (LMICs) that have experienced an unprecedented increase in the prevalence of diabetes over the past two decades (1, 2). Global insulin need is expected to increase by 20% over the next decade, making insulin supply, delivery, and availability a public health imperative (3). But limited insulin production has led to a reliance on the few exporting countries that house corporate and manufacturing facilities of major multinational corporations (MNCs) (4). We use an innovative linkage of two datasets in an attempt to answer two questions: From where do countries with no domestic production source their insulin? And of these countries, are their present levels of insulin imports sufficient to treat the in-country number of persons with diabetes?
