Josh Wilkerson was alone, in sleeping quarters above the northern Virginia dog kennel where he worked, when he suffered a series of strokes that would prove fatal.

He had aged out of his stepfather's health insurance plan on his 26th birthday and eventually switched to over-the-counter insulin. Like many other diabetics his age, he could not afford the prescription brand he needed.

A few hours after taking another dose of the lower-grade medication that June day in Leesburg, Wilkerson was in the throes of a diabetic coma - his blood sugar level 17 times higher than what is considered normal.

His death at age 27 illustrates the worst-case scenario for thousands of lower-income people living with diabetes in the United States who depend on over-the-counter insulin that - for $25 a vial at Walmart - sells for one-tenth of what the more effective version costs.

Last week, the Trump administration announced steps to allow states to import lower-priced medication from Canada - a plan that could potentially include insulin.

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