First negotiated Medicare drug prices go into effect Jan. 1

(The Center Square) – Negotiated lower Medicare costs for 10 popular prescription drugs went into effect Thursday.

How much those savings will be passed on to Medicare Part D and applicable Advantage plan enrollees is unclear, however, as drug pricing and reimbursement is notoriously complex and opaque, though lawmakers have pushed for more transparency in recent years.

In 2022, the Inflation Reduction Act authorized and required Health and Human Services for the first time to negotiate the maximum price drug manufacturers can charge Medicare plans for 10 popular drugs each year, starting in 2026.

Earlier this year, the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services announced its first set of Medicare-negotiated “maximum fair prices” for 10 selected drugs, with negotiated prices ranging from 38% to 79% below their list prices. A drug’s list price is the manufacturer’s sticker price, though it is rarely what insurers or patients actually pay and is mainly used as a starting point for negotiations.

Th...