Opinion | 4 Arguments You Will Hear Against Medicare Drug Price Negotiation - The New York Times

Mr. Levitt is the executive vice president for health policy at KFF, formerly known as Kaiser Family Foundation. President Biden recently announced the first 10 drugs that will be subject to price negotiations with Medicare. They include drugs to treat diabetes, heart disease, blood cancer, blood clots and rheumatoid arthritis — diseases that affect millions of Americans. While government-negotiated prices will not take effect until 2026, the list of specific drugs makes this legislative centerpiece of the Inflation Reduction Act more tangible. Drug price negotiation had been prohibited since Medicare coverage of prescription drugs was first authorized. The law that created the benefit, signed by President George W. Bush in 2003, explicitly prohibited the government from directly negotiating prices — a testament to the historical political power of the pharmaceutical industry. Things have changed. Although more limited in scope than advocates originally hoped for — among other things,

Mr. Levitt is the executive vice president for health policy at KFF, formerly known as Kaiser Family Foundation. President Biden recently announced the first 10 drugs that will be subject to price negotiations with Medicare. They include drugs to treat diabetes, heart disease, blood cancer, blood clots and rheumatoid arthritis — diseases that affect millions of Americans. While government-negotiated prices will not take effect until 2026, the list of specific drugs makes this legislative centerpiece of the Inflation Reduction Act more tangible. Drug price negotiation had been prohibited since