Deals will lower prices of Medicare's costliest drugs, White House says — see the list

WASHINGTON - The White House said Thursday that federal officials struck deals with drug companies to lower the price for 10 of Medicare’s most popular and costliest drugs. The deals will knock hundreds of dollars, and in some cases thousands, off the list prices. 

The discounts range between 38% and 79% on the medication's list price, which is the cost of medication before discounts or rebates are applied — not the price people actually pay for prescriptions, according to the Biden administration. 

The discounts, agreed to come after months of negotiations with drug manufacturers, will impact the price of drugs used by millions of older Americans to help manage diabetes, blood cancers and prevent heart failure or blood clots. The drugs include the blood thinners Xarelto and Eliquis and diabetes drugs Jardiance and Januvia.

FILE - President Joe Biden speaks during an event at the National Institutes of Health (NIH) in Bethesda, Maryland, US, on Dec. 14 2023. Photographer: Chris Kleponis/CNP/Bloomberg via Getty Images

Medicare spent $50 billion covering the drugs last year and taxpayers are expected to save $6 billion on the new prices, which do not go into effect until 2026. Older adults could save as much as $1.5 billion in total on their medications in out-of-pocket costs. 

However, administration officials released few details about how they arrived at those calculations.

Here’s what we know about the newly-negotiated prices:

Medicare negotiated drug prices

The Medicare program provides health care coverage for more than 67 million older and disabled Americans. For decades, the federal government had been barred from bartering with pharmaceutical companies over the price of their drugs, even though it's a routine process for private insurers.

"For years, millions of Americans were forced to choose between paying for medications or putting food on the table, while Big Pharma blocked Medicare from being able to negotiate prices on behalf of seniors and people with disabilities," President Joe Biden said in a statement. "But we fought back – and won."

Powerful drug companies unsuccessfully tried to file lawsuits to stop the negotiations, which became law in 2022, when a Democratic-controlled Congress passed the Inflation Reduction Act (IRA) and overhauled several Medicare prescription drug regulations. But executives of those companies have also hinted in recent weeks during earnings calls that they don't expect the negotiations to impact their bottom line.

Meanwhile, pharmaceutical officials blasted the news from the White House, saying it will spread health care costs to taxpayers in other ways, including their Medicare premiums.

"The administration is using the IRA’s price-setting scheme to drive political headlines, but patients will be disappointed when they find out what it means for them," Steve Ubl, the president of the Pharmaceutical Research and Manufacturers of America (PhRMA). "The ironically named Inflation Reduction Act is a bad deal being forced on American patients: higher costs, more frustrating insurance denials and fewer treatments and cures for our loved ones."

In 2025, the Department of Health and Human Services can select another 15 drugs for price negotiations.

The new deals will become a focal point for Vice President Kamala Harris’ presidential campaign, especially since she cast the tie-breaking vote to pass the law. She will join Biden on Thursday to announce the drug prices. It will be their first joint speaking appearance since she replaced him at the top of the Democratic ticket, as they both struggle to convince voters that costs will trend down after years of above-normal inflation.

The pair last appeared publicly together to welcome back the U.S. Americans detained in Russia who were freed as part of a massive prisoner swap earlier this month.

List: Medicare costs lowered for these 10 drugs

The new prices for the following drugs will go into effect for people with Medicare Part D prescription drug coverage in 2026, according to the White House.

Biden-Harris joint appearance

U.S. Vice President Kamala Harris gives remarks alongside U.S. President Joe Biden at Prince George’s Community College on August 15, 2024 in Largo, Maryland. Biden and Harris held the event to talk about their administration's efforts to lower drug

Expand

Biden and Harris spoke Thursday afternoon at an event at a Maryland community college to talk about the administration’s work to lower the cost of prescription drugs.

They also praised each other.

Harris, who spoke first, said it’s her "eternal and great honor" to serve with Biden, whom she called an "extraordinary human being and American and leader."

Biden said of Harris, "She’s going to make one hell of a president."