The Biden administration on Wednesday released a blueprint for implementing the Medicare drug price negotiation process set in motion by last year’s Inflation Reduction Act. The process will get rolling in the coming months as the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services issues guidance on the initial round of negotiations and invites public input on key issues, such as the exchange of offers and counteroffers between Medicare and drugmakers, and the methodology for applying negotiated prices, according to documents released Wednesday by the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services.
Facing strong pharmaceutical-industry opposition to the negotiations and potential litigation over the implementation process, administration officials on calls with reporters Wednesday said they were focused on engaging with drugmakers, health plans, healthcare providers, patients and other groups as the negotiations unfold. Officials are looking “to maximize transparency, predictability and collaboration,” CMS administrator Chiquita Brooks-LaSure said on a call Wednesday. The Inflation Reduction Act for the first time allows the federal government to negotiate prices of some Medicare-covered drugs, a move that is expected to help rein in premiums for Medicare Part D prescription-drug plans and out-of-pocket costs. The negotiations are also projected to save M …