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Congress mulls cap on what Medicare enrollees pay for drugs
Source: Associated Press
Congress mulls cap on what Medicare enrollees pay for drugs
By RICARDO ALONSO-ZALDIVAR
February 24, 2019
WASHINGTON (AP) — With health care a top issue for American voters, Congress may actually be moving toward doing something this year to address the high cost of prescription drugs.
President Donald Trump, Democrats trying to retire him in 2020, and congressional incumbents of both parties all say they want action. Democrats and Republicans are far apart on whether to empower Medicare to negotiate prices, but there’s enough overlap to allow for agreement in other areas.
High on the list is capping out-of-pocket costs for participants in Medicare’s popular Part D prescription drug program , which has left some beneficiaries with bills rivaling a mortgage payment.
The effort to cap out-of-pocket costs for participants in Medicare’s popular Part D program is being considered as part of broader legislation to restrain drug prices.
Limits on high medical and drug bills are already part of most employer-based and private insurance. They’re called “out-of-pocket maximums” and are required under the Obama-era health law for in-network services. But Medicare has remained an outlier even as prices have soared for potent new brand-name drugs, as well as older mainstays such as insulin.
-snip-
By RICARDO ALONSO-ZALDIVAR
February 24, 2019
WASHINGTON (AP) — With health care a top issue for American voters, Congress may actually be moving toward doing something this year to address the high cost of prescription drugs.
President Donald Trump, Democrats trying to retire him in 2020, and congressional incumbents of both parties all say they want action. Democrats and Republicans are far apart on whether to empower Medicare to negotiate prices, but there’s enough overlap to allow for agreement in other areas.
High on the list is capping out-of-pocket costs for participants in Medicare’s popular Part D prescription drug program , which has left some beneficiaries with bills rivaling a mortgage payment.
The effort to cap out-of-pocket costs for participants in Medicare’s popular Part D program is being considered as part of broader legislation to restrain drug prices.
Limits on high medical and drug bills are already part of most employer-based and private insurance. They’re called “out-of-pocket maximums” and are required under the Obama-era health law for in-network services. But Medicare has remained an outlier even as prices have soared for potent new brand-name drugs, as well as older mainstays such as insulin.
-snip-
Read more: https://apnews.com/99edcd50af634771a24b0e1a82760728
