WASHINGTON - Democrats reached an agreement on provisions designed to lower the price of some prescription drugs, appearing to resolve one of the final issues in the party’s negotiations over their $1.85 trillion healthcare, education and climate-change bill.
The agreement, which is backed by the White House, would empower Medicare to negotiate the price of some drugs, penalize drug companies for raising prices faster than the rate of inflation and cap out-of-pocket costs for seniors at $2,000 annually. It also creates a $35 out-of-pocket monthly maximum for insulin, Democrats said.
The chairman of the Senate Finance Committee said that price negotiations would begin in 2023 with 10 drugs prioritized by their expense, need, and kinds of treatment. These drugs also need to have passed the exclusivity period that protects drugs from generic competition to be considered for price negotiations.
After the White House left the drug pricing issue out of its scope of focus in the broader spending package, the Democrats were forced to scramble to meet an agreement on the matter. The Democrats faced opposition from some centrists concerned with innovation being stifled as a result of such legislation.
Democrats are still working through a few issues in the bill, like immigration and reducing carbon emissions. Lawmakers also got close to repealing the limit on the deduction for state and local taxes. The final negotiations on these issues will be faced by skeptics like Senator Joe Manchin, who said he might vote to kill the legislation in the 50-50 senate.
Manchin raised concerns about the bill's impact on debt and inflation despite having previously expressed support for the government negotiating lower prices for prescription drugs.
Republicans have criticized efforts to allow Medicare to negotiate directly with drug companies, citing this could lead to fewer new drugs and higher costs.
Democrats are using a process called reconciliation to circumvent GOP opposition to the legislation. This requires the support of all 50 Democrats in the Senate and nearly every Democrat in the house.
For the full article click HERE