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The Biden administration released its list of the first 10 drugs that Medicare will target for price cuts — reductions the government plans to achieve by negotiating the prices with drugmakers.
People on Medicare who took the 10 drugs paid a total of $3.4 billion in out-of-pocket costs for them in 2022, according to the government. The cost to Medicare was much higher — about $50 billion in total.
The list includes:
- blood thinners Eliquis and Xarelto
- diabetes drugs Jardiance, Januvia, Farxiga and Fiasp/Novolog insulin
- Enbrel and Stelara, drugs used to treat autoimmune diseases like rheumatoid arthritis, psoriasis and Crohn’s disease
- Imbruvica, a drug that treats blood cancers
The power to negotiate the prices comes from the Inflation Reduction Act passed last year. The actual negotiations will occur during the next two years, with prices announced by Sept. 1, 2024. But the lower prices for the drugs won’t begin until 2026.
Drugmakers are fighting the new law in the courts
President Biden is expected to make the price negotiations…
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