Some people on Medicare could see less spending on potentially lifesaving drugs by the end of the year.
Announced by the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS). 54 drugs available under Medicare Part B Coinsurance rates are lower from October 1st to December 31st because prices set by manufacturers are increasing faster than the rate of inflation.
Part B drugs are typically given in a doctor’s office or hospital and include cancer drugs, Alzheimer’s disease drugs, and osteoporosis injections.
Under the AARP-backed Prescription Drug Act of 2022, coinsurance rates for these 54 drugs will be 20% of their inflation-inflated prices, or less than what beneficiaries would otherwise pay. It gets lower. . Pharmaceutical companies would also be subject to penalties for price gouging in the form of rebates to Medicare, but these funds would go toward the National Health Insurance Program, which provides insurance to more than 67 million elderly and disabled Americans. It will be used to ensure sustainability. hindrance.
Some people see significant savings
More than 822,000 people on Medicare each year use 54 selected drugs to treat conditions such as cancer, osteoporosis and pneumonia. HHS says some Medicare enrollees taking these drugs saw savings ranging from $1 per day to more than $3,000 per day in the last quarter of this year. is.
How much each person pays for their drugs depends on whether they have additional insurance that covers or reduces Part B’s 20 percent coinsurance. The list price for some of these drugs is hundreds of thousands of dollars per treatment.
