WASHINGTON, D.C. – U.S. Senator Peter Welch (D-Vt.) today celebrated the White House’s announcement that it has selected 15 additional prescription drugs for Medicare price negotiations. These newly announced prescription drugs—together with ten drugs already negotiated last year—represent nearly a third of all Medicare Part D spending on prescription drugs and treat conditions such as diabetes and cancer. These prescription drugs are subject to price negotiation under the Inflation Reduction Act (IRA), which Senator Welch helped pass as a member of the House of Representatives. Pharmaceutical companies have until February 28th to accept the offers or propose counteroffers.
“Throughout their time in office, Joe Biden and Kamala Harris have championed historic efforts to lower drug prices for our seniors, and this announcement today builds upon that legacy. The Inflation Reduction Act’s drug pricing provisions are supported by red and blue states alike–with support from 85% of Americans–and will put around $1.5 billion back in the pockets of Medicare beneficiaries next year,” said Senator Welch. “The federal government has an obligation to care for its citizens, and that commitment must continue in the next administration. We’ll keep fighting against Big Pharma’s greedy tactics and work to deliver savings for patients in Vermont and across America.”
The 15 new drugs selected today include:
- Ozempic; Rybelsus; Wegovy, for Type 2 diabetes.
- Trelegy Ellipta, an asthma treatment.
- Xtandi, for prostate cancer.
- Pomalyst, a chemotherapy drug.
- Ibrance, a breast cancer drug.
- Ofev, for idiopathic pulmonary fibrosis.
- Linzess, a chronic constipation drug.
- Calquence, a cancer drug.
- Austedo; Austedo XR, for Huntington’s disease.
- Breo Ellipta, a Chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) drug.
- Tradjenta, a diabetes drug.
- Xifaxan, for diarrhea and irritable bowel syndrome.
- Vraylar, an antipsychotic drug.
Medicare’s drug price negotiation program, a major long-term cost-saving feature of the Inflation Reduction Act, grants Medicare the authority to negotiate prices for up to 60 medications to help make life-saving drugs more affordable to patients. Provisions from Sen. Welch and Senator Amy Klobuchar (D-Minn.)’s bill to end the ban on Medicare negotiating lower prescription drug prices for Medicare’s 50 million seniors, introduced during Welch’s tenure in the U.S. House of Representatives, were incorporated into the legislation.
Senator Welch has urged federal courts to uphold the constitutionality of the Inflation Reduction Act’s drug pricing provisions. Last Congress, Sens. Welch and Klobuchar introduced the Strengthening Medicare and Reducing Taxpayer (SMART) Prices Act to build on the success of the Inflation Reduction Act to increase the number of drugs eligible for negotiation and enhance the ability of the Department of Health and Human Services to negotiate lower drug prices for Medicare Part D beneficiaries.
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