Diabetes, Dollars, and Power: The Fight For Affordable Insulin.

In this episode of wRight To The Root, Stephanie Wright is joined by Candace, a Johannesburg-based access advisor with Doctors Without Borders (MSF), to unpack the global insulin access crisis and why a medication that has existed for over 100 years is still priced, patented, and distributed like a luxury. Candace shares how growing up in Alexandra, a historically marginalized township shaped by apartheid, fueled her commitment to structural change, not charity.

Together, we dig into what keeps insulin and diabetes medicines out of reach, including patent systems that protect monopolies, supply decisions that can trigger shortages, and a market that increasingly prioritizes high-profit GLP-1 drugs while basic diabetes care gets squeezed. We also talk about the real path forward, from policy reform and competition enforcement, to local and regional manufacturing, to grassroots organizing and treatment literacy so patients and communities can advocate with power and clarity.

If you have ever wondered why life-saving medicine can be marketed like candy and rationed like gold, this conversation is for you.

Listen, share, and take action, because patients united are harder to ignore.