Starting July 1, seniors with diabetes should be able to save some money when they buy the blood sugar testing supplies they need to monitor their disease.

That’s when Medicare kicks off a new cost-saving program that will require beneficiaries to order these supplies through a national mail-order program or a Medicare-approved pharmacy.

Right now, Medicare pays about $77.90 per month for 100 blood sugar test strips and lancets (the needles used to prick the finger to draw a drop of blood), according to the Center for Medicare and Medicaid Services.

Medicare recipients currently pay 20 percent of that cost, which averages to $15.58 a month. Once the national mail-order program kicks in, the total cost will drop to $22.47, due to a competitive bidding process. That means the cost to the Medicare recipient will only be around $4.50.

Over a year, each person with diabetes on traditional Medicare will save $133.

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