All 10 makers of the first drugs selected for Medicare price negotiations will participate, the White House announced Tuesday, although many of them are now suing the administration in an effort to stop the process.
Many companies separately told The Hill, ahead of the Oct. 1 deadline, that they would participate. The White House confirmed the news in a statement, completing a political victory lap.
Last year, about 9 million Medicare enrollees spent $3.4 billion out of pocket on select drugs from companies including Johnson & Johnson, Merck, Bristol Myers Squibb and AstraZeneca, the White House said .
“For decades, big pharmaceutical companies have fought to prevent Medicare from directly negotiating lower drug prices for seniors and other Medicare beneficiaries,” the White House said. “President Biden and Congressional Democrats finally defeated Big Pharma and allowed Medicare to directly negotiate lower drug prices by passing the Inflation Reduction Act. »
The drugs on the list are widely used to treat or prevent common conditions such as heart disease and diabetes. They include the anticoagulants Eliquis and Xarelto; Januvia, Farxiga and NovoLog for diabetes; and Enbrel, for rheumatoid arthritis.
Sunday was the deadline for companies to decide whether they wanted to participate in the price negotiation program, and Monday was the deadline to submit manufacturer-specific information – like research and development costs, as well as sales data and revenue – to administration.
The Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services will send each company an initial offer by February 1, and the negotiation process will continue until August 1, 2024. The negotiated prices will not take effect until 2026. Others Companies will be added in the future. future.
Drugmakers have been fighting negotiations since the Inflation Reduction Act was passed last year, and at least nine separate lawsuits have been filed across the country as part of the effort.
Last week, a federal judge ruled that the U.S. Chamber of Commerce’s attempt to temporarily block implementation of the negotiation process had been rejected. It was the first time that a judge intervened on the program. But the judge also denied the government’s motion to dismiss the case.
The companies argued that the negotiation process is unconstitutional and amounts to forced price-fixing, which could lead to lower profits, less money invested in research and development and, therefore, fewer drugs on the market. the market.
The companies said they agreed to participate primarily because they had no choice.
Manufacturers who do not wish to participate in negotiations can remove all of their products from Medicare and Medicaid coverage, but they would lose a very lucrative revenue stream.
