The Trump administration has revealed new, lower prices for 15 widely used prescription drugs, the result of Medicare negotiations with pharmaceutical companies that are expected to save the government billions of dollars. The list covers medications for conditions such as cancer, diabetes, lung conditions, and depression, the New York Times reports. The administration says the new prices would have slashed Medicare spending on these medications by 44% if they'd been in place in 2024, for a hypothetical $12 billion savings. The new prices are set to take effect in 2027 for most of the drugs. The new prices for the GLP-1 drug known as Ozempic, Rybelsus, and Wegovy will kick in next year. NPR reports that Medicare negotiated a 71% discount on the obesity and diabetes drugs.
The price-lowering negotiations were made possible by 2022's Inflation Reduction Act, which Joe Biden signed into law. The law, which did not receive any GOP votes, allowed the health secretary to negotiate drug prices on Medicare's behalf. Pharmaceutical companies fought the policy in court and lost. Mehmet Oz, who runs Medicare and Medicaid, claimed his team "achieved substantially better outcomes for taxpayers and seniors in the Medicare Part D program—not the modest or even counterproductive 'deals' we saw before." Democratic Sen. Ron Wyden, who authored the measure that made the negotiations possible, countered that the announcement "is a result of Democratic efforts to lower health costs for older Americans."
It's not clear how much money the deals will save Medicare beneficiaries when they are buying drugs because individual factors vary, the AP reports. In the first round of the program, the Biden administration negotiated lower prices for 10 drugs, which will kick in at the start of next year, the Times reports. Medicare will negotiate new prices for another 15 drugs next year.
d
,
uBlock 
,
and
Ghostery 
)
