The Biden Administration announced, on August 29, the first ten prescription drugs that will be subject to Medicare price negotiations. The Inflation Reduction Act allows the Medicare Drug Price Negotiation Program to work directly with drug manufacturers to improve the affordability of high-cost name-brand drugs.
The ten Medicare Part D drugs subject to negotiations are:
- Eliquis – treats blood clots.
- Jardiance – treats diabetes and heart failure.
- Xarelto – treats blood clots and reduces the risk of coronary or peripheral artery disease.
- Januvia – treats diabetes.
- Farxiga – treats diabetes, heart failure, and chronic kidney disease.
- Entresto – treats heart failure.
- Enbrel – treats rheumatoid arthritis, psoriasis, and psoriatic arthritis.
- Imbruvica – treats blood cancers.
- Stelara – treats psoriasis, psoriatic arthritis, Crohn’s disease, and ulcerative colitis.
- Fiasp/Novolog – treats diabetes.
In 2022, Medicare enrollees collectively paid $3.4 billion in out-of-pocket costs on the above drugs, which is why they will be subject to price negotiations moving forward. Over the next four years, up to 60 costly drugs will face price negotiations in an effort to make prescription drugs accessible to more Americans.
As more information is made available, Creative Benefits, Inc. will provide additional updates.