New negotiated drug prices are expected to save millions of seniors and other Medicare beneficiaries $1.5 billion in out-of-pocket costs in the first year of the program alone. This fact sheet was provided by the White House:
For far too long, Americans have paid more for their prescription drugs than any developed nation. Today, the Biden-Harris Administration is delivering on its promise to lower out-of-pocket drug costs for seniors and save money for Americans. That’s because Medicare has the power to negotiate prescription drug prices for the first time in history thanks to the Inflation Reduction Act, which was signed into law by President Biden with Vice President Harris casting the tie-breaking vote. Because Medicare is now able to negotiate lower prescription drug prices for seniors and people with disabilities, American taxpayers are expected to save $6 billion on prescription drug costs, and people enrolled in Medicare are expected to save $1.5 billion in out-of-pocket costs in 2026 alone. President Biden and Vice President Harris took on Big Pharma and won, and now millions of seniors and others on Medicare will soon see their drug costs go down on some of the most common and expensive prescription drugs that treat heart disease, cancer, diabetes, blood clots, and more.
HHS Announces Negotiated Prices for Medicare Drugs
HHS has reached agreements with all participating manufacturers on new negotiated, lower drug prices for the first 10 drugs selected for the Medicare drug price negotiation program. After manufacturers have steadily increased the list prices of all 10 of these drugs since they went on the market, these new prices will cut the list price of these drugs between 38 and 79 percent.
The new prices will go into effect for people with Medicare Part D prescription drug coverage in 2026:
| Drug Name | Commonly Treated Conditions | Number of Medicare Enrollees Who Used the Drug in 2023 | Drug List Price in 2023 for 30-day Supply | Negotiated Price for 2026 for 30-day Supply | Savings (%) |
| Eliquis | Prevention and treatment of blood clots | 3,928,000 | $521 | $231 | $290 (-56%) |
| Jardiance | Diabetes; Heart failure; Chronic kidney disease | 1,883,000 | $573 | $197 | $376 (-66%) |
| Xarelto | Prevention and treatment of blood clots; Reduction of risk for patients with coronary or peripheral artery disease | 1,324,000 | $517 | $197 | $320 (-62%) |
| Januvia | Diabetes | 843,000 | $527 | $113 | $414 (-79%) |
| Farxiga | Diabetes; Heart failure; Chronic kidney disease | 994,000 | $556 | $178.50 | $377.50 (-68%) |
| Entresto | Heart failure | 664,000 | $628 | $295 | $333 (-53%) |
| Enbrel | Rheumatoid arthritis; Psoriasis; Psoriatic arthritis | 48,000 | $7,106 | $2,355 | $4,751 (-67%) |
| Imbruvica | Blood cancers | 17,000 | $14,934 | $9,319 | $5,615 (-38%) |
| Stelara | Psoriasis; Psoriatic arthritis; Crohn’s disease; Ulcerative colitis | 23,000 | $13,836 | $4,695 | $9,141 (-66%) |
| Fiasp; Fiasp FlexTouch; Fiasp PenFill; NovoLog; NovoLog FlexPen; NovoLog PenFill | Diabetes | 785,000 | $495 | $119 | $376 (-76%) |
Source: CMS, https://www.cms.gov/files/document/fact-sheet-negotiated-prices-initial-price-applicability-year-2026.pdf
These ten drugs are among those with highest total spending in Medicare Part D. If the negotiated prices had been in effect during 2023, Medicare would have saved an estimated $6 billion. When the negotiated prices go into effect in 2026, people enrolled in Medicare Part D are estimated to save $1.5 billion in out-of-pocket costs.
Millions of Part D enrollees that depend on these treatments to treat life-threatening conditions including diabetes, heart failure, and cancer are also expected to see lower out-of-pocket costs for these drugs. For example, a Medicare enrollee who takes Stelara for their arthritis and pays $3,459 on their drug today for a 30-day supply would pay only $1,174 in 2026. Many seniors and people with disabilities on Medicare who take these drugs will also benefit from the Inflation Reduction Act’s $2,000 cap on out-of-pocket spending, which will be fully in effect in 2025, saving 19 million beneficiaries an average of $400 per year, in addition to these savings from the negotiated drug prices.
More drugs will be selected each year as part of Medicare’s drug price negotiation program. Medicare will select up to 15 additional drugs covered under Part D for negotiation in 2025, up to an additional 15 Part B and D drugs in 2026, and up to 20 drugs every year after that.
Building on Progress Lowering Health Care Costs
Every day, millions of Americans are saving money on health care costs because of the Biden-Harris Administration’s actions.
- People with Medicare are saving an average of $70 in out-of-pocket costs on vaccines like shingles and Tdap because President Biden’s Inflation Reduction Act made recommended vaccines free for beneficiaries, including the 10.3 million enrollees who received a free vaccine in 2023.
- All 3.4 million Medicare Part D enrollees who filled an insulin prescription in 2023 had their insulin costs capped at $35 per month, saving some seniors hundreds of dollars for a month’s supply.
- Some seniors and other Medicare beneficiaries taking drugs covered under Part B for which manufacturers have hiked prices faster than inflation are saving up to $4,593 in lower coinsurance this quarter thanks to the new Medicare inflation rebates.
- Starting this year, Part D enrollees no longer pay 5% co-insurance when they reach the catastrophic phase of their benefit and have their out-of-pocket drug costs capped at about $3,500. In just the first quarter of 2024, over 260,000 people benefited from this cap.
- Millions of American are saving an average of about $800 per year on health insurance premiums because of savings from the American Rescue Plan that the Inflation Reduction Act extended, helping drive the nation’s uninsured rate to historic lows under the Biden-Harris Administration.
Check out the Biden-Harris Administration’s Savings Explorer to see how some of the Administration’s policies are helping Americans save money on annual expenses – from health care to junk fees, grocery costs and more.
Continuing to Lower Prescription Drug Costs
People with Medicare will continue to see their prescription drug costs go down as more provisions of the Inflation Reduction Act go into effect next year. Nearly 19 million seniors and other Part D beneficiaries are projected to save $400 per year on prescription drugs when the out-of-pocket cap drops to $2,000 in 2025, and 1.9 million enrollees with the highest drug costs will save an average of $2,500 per year. And the lower prices negotiated for the high-spend drugs announced today will go into effect in 2026.
The President’s Budget for Fiscal Year 2025 builds on this success by significantly increasing the pace of negotiation, bringing more drugs into negotiation sooner after they launch, expanding the $2,000 out-of-pocket prescription drug cost cap beyond Medicare and into the commercial market, and other steps to build on the Inflation Reduction Act drug provisions. The Budget also includes proposals to curb inflation in prescription drug prices and extends the $35 cost-sharing cap for monthly prescriptions of insulin to the commercial market to lower drug costs for all Americans.
Statement from President Joe Biden on Lower Prescription Drug Prices
For years, millions of Americans were forced to choose between paying for medications or putting food on the table, while Big Pharma blocked Medicare from being able to negotiate prices on behalf of seniors and people with disabilities. But we fought back – and won.
Today, for the first time in history, my Administration is announcing that Medicare has reached agreements on new, lower prices with the manufacturers of all 10 drugs selected for the first round of drug price negotiation. When these lower prices go into effect, people on Medicare will save $1.5 billion in out-of-pocket costs for their prescription drugs and Medicare will save $6 billion in the first year alone. It’s a relief for the millions of seniors that take these drugs to treat everything from heart failure, blood clots, diabetes, arthritis, Crohn’s disease, and more – and it’s a relief for American taxpayers.
This historic milestone is only possible because of the Inflation Reduction Act, which passed with the leadership of Democrats in Congress, and with Vice President Harris casting the tie-breaking vote in the Senate – without a single Republican voting for it. We showed that major progress can be made for the American people when we work together to take on special interests, even as Big Pharma continues to go to court to try to block lower prices for consumers. But the Vice President and I are not backing down. We will continue the fight to make sure all Americans can pay less for prescription drugs and to give more breathing room for American families.
Statement from Vice President Kamala Harris on Lower Prescription Drug Prices
Every American should be able to access the health care they need no matter their income or wealth. That is why President Biden and I fought to lower the costs of health care with our Inflation Reduction Act, transformational legislation that I was proud to cast the tie-breaking vote on in the Senate. During the two years since President Biden signed this landmark bill into law, we have cut prescription drug costs, capped the cost of insulin at $35 a month, and lowered premiums for seniors and people with disabilities on Medicare – helping millions of families get the care they deserve.
Today, we are building on our work to lower costs and increase access to affordable prescription drugs by announcing that the Biden-Harris Administration has reached agreements with all participating manufacturers to lower prices for the first 10 drugs selected for the Medicare price negotiation program – from those that treat cancer to those that treat diabetes, heart disease, and blood clots. Thanks to our historic work to allow Medicare to negotiate lower drug prices, millions of Americans who rely on these drugs will save on their out-of-pocket costs. While people enrolled in Medicare are expected to save $1.5 billion in 2026 alone, American taxpayers will also save an estimated $6 billion.
Today’s announcement will be lifechanging for so many of our loved ones across the nation, and we are not stopping here. Additional prescription drugs will be selected each year as part of our Medicare drug price negotiation program. This includes up to 15 additional drugs covered under Medicare Part D for negotiation in 2025, up to an additional 15 Part B and Part D drugs in 2026, and up to 20 drugs every year after that.
From my time as Attorney General of California and a U.S. Senator, I have consistently worked to lower the costs of prescription drugs and fought to protect patients. As Attorney General, I held Big Pharma accountable for their deceptive and illegal practices. The record-breaking settlements that I won – for the people – amounted to more than $7 billion against pharmaceutical companies for their unsafe and unfair tactics. President Biden and I will never stop fighting for the health, wellbeing, and financial stability of the American people.