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The blood thinner Eliquis and popular diabetes treatments including Jardiance are among the first drugs that will be targeted for price negotiations in an effort to cut Medicare costs. President Joe Biden’s administration on Tuesday released a list of 10 drugs for which the federal government will take a first-ever step: negotiating drug prices directly with the manufacturer. (Murphy, Seitz and Megerian, 8/29)

The drugs include Eliquis, Jardiance, Xarelto, Januvia, Farxiga, Entresto, Enbrel, Imbruvica, Stelara, and insulins that go by names including Fiasp and NovoLog. The new prices will be announced on Sept. 1, 2024 and will go into effect on Jan. 1, 2026. The drugs were chosen from a list of 50 drugs that cost Medicare’s pharmacy drug benefit the most money. (Cohrs, 8/29)

The drugs listed Tuesday are among the top 50 with the highest spending for Medicare Part D, which covers prescription medications that seniors fill at retail pharmacies. The 10 medicines accounted for $50.5 billion, or about 20%, of total Part D prescription drug costs from June 1, 2022, to May 31, 2023, according to the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services, or CMS.  (Constantino, 8/29)

When could Medicare patients who take one of the 10 drugs pay less? Jan. 1, 2026. However, several factors could complicate that timeline. This includes the outcomes of several lawsuits challenging the constitutionality of the law and the outcomes of the 2024 presidential elections. If the law goes forward as prescribed, then the final negotiated price for the products won’t be reached until Sept. 1, 2024. (King and Lim, 8/28)

In the year since the passage of Democrats' drug pricing law, pharmaceutical companies and venture capitalists have shifted their priorities and placed less emphasis on developing synthetic drugs that will be subject to price negotiations faster than biologics. Pharmaceutical interests say it's proof that Democrats' signature health policy achievement is driving investment away from some mainstays of modern medicine. (Reed, 8/29)

Texans struggling with skyrocketing medication costs could see relief under a new program that allows distributors to import cheaper drugs from Canada. House Bill 25 creates the “Wholesale Prescription Drug Importation Program.” The state’s Health and Human Services Commission would contract with Canadian drug wholesalers and suppliers to bring safe, eligible prescription drugs to Texas consumers at prices far cheaper than U.S. wholesalers. (Harper, 8/29)