program "Medicare" The American company reduces the prices of 15 expensive medicines to save billions of dollars

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program "Medicare" The American company reduces the prices of 15 expensive medicines to save billions of dollars

The American health insurance program, “Medicare”, announced new negotiated prices for 15 of the program’s most expensive medications, saving the equivalent of 36% compared to recent annual spending on these medications, or about $8.5 billion in net covered prescription costs.

The American website (US News) reported that the new prices will go into effect in 2027, including a monthly price of $274 for Novo Nordisk’s semaglutide, known as Wijuvi for weight loss and Ozimbic for diabetes.

Medicare’s latest net price for Ozimbic was $428 per month, according to an analysis published in the journal Care Management and Specialty Pharmacy, while the program set the official price before any discounts or refunds at $959 per month. According to the official non-discounted rates, the savings ranged On the 15 drugs, between 38% and 85%.

“They went to the negotiating table and tried to put pressure on prices, and that’s what they did,” said William Padula, a professor of pharmacy and health care economics at the University of Southern California.

The largest cuts included drugs for leukemia, lung treatment and breast cancer treatment, each cutting more than $4,000 from the net price. Estimated prices.

It should be noted that the annual price negotiations came within the 2022 inflation reduction law approved by President Joe Biden, which for the first time allowed Medicare to negotiate directly with pharmaceutical companies after the previous law had prevented it.

The estimates indicated that the expected savings for 2027 (36%) are higher than the previous round, which saved 22% on 10 medications. Different, according to Goldman Sachs estimates.

Among other drugs included in the negotiations this year is the drug “Triligy Ellipta”. For asthma and chronic obstructive pulmonary disease at $175 compared to the official price of $654, and the drug “Linsis” To treat irritable bowel syndrome from AbbVie, at $136 compared to $539.

Medicare covers more than 67 million people over the age of 65 or with disabilities, and experts confirm that these new prices will achieve savings, and may encourage other insurance companies and beneficiaries to demand similar prices.

Despite these reductions, the new prices are still higher compared to other rich countries, where they were Some medicines are more than two to five times higher than agreed prices in four high-income countries.

The next round of drug price negotiations is expected to begin next February, covering an additional 15 medicines, including medicines given in hospitals.