Key Points
The U.S. government named 10 drugs that will be subject to the first ever price negotiations by Medicare, taking aim at some of the most widely used and costliest medicines in America..
At stake is arguably the governments strongest effort to date to tackle high drug costsif drugmakers cant persuade courts to scuttle the negotiating powers that Medicare was granted last year..
On the list of targeted medicines announced by the Biden administration Tuesday are treatments for cancer, diabetes and heart disease that can cost tens of thousands of dollars a year or more, including blood thinner Eliquis and diabetes treatment Jardiance..
The Pharmaceutical Research and Manufacturers of America, an industry trade group, said drugmakers already discount many of the listed drugs, and negotiations will curb research into certain drugs while not stopping health plans from limiting access..
Under the law, Medicare will now be able to negotiate the prices of a certain number of drugs each yearones that the program spends the most on and that dont face competition from less-expensive copies..
