8/18/2023 0 Comments Medicare copay reliefMedicare Part D is the program that covers the cost of drugs that seniors typically pick up in pharmacies. Those drugs will be some that Medicare Part D spends the most money on and that have no generic competition. Under the Inflation Reduction Act, HHS will select 10 drugs to be drawn into a first round of price negotiations. "Lawsuits like this are simply an attempt to keep high profits by gouging America's seniors." "Seniors and taxpayers are tired of being the piggy bank for the profits of big drug companies," Sweeney said in a statement Tuesday. "Conscripting companies to legitimize government extortion is the sort of parroted orthodoxy that the First Amendment's compelled-speech doctrine forbids," the complaint says.īut AARP, the influential lobby group that represents people older than 50, said Medicare's price negotiations will save billions of dollars for seniors, many of whom cannot afford their prescription drugs.īill Sweeney, the AARP's chief lobbyist, accused the pharmaceutical industry of fighting to "pad their profits" while Americans face the highest drug prices in the world. The drugmaker claimed the IRA forces companies to participate in a "political deception" that presents the program as a negotiation for fair prices. Merck also argued that Medicare's new powers to negotiate prices violate the company's free speech rights under the First Amendment. "Those forced sales-coerced by the threat of draconian penalties that the Government has admitted no manufacturer could ever rationally afford to pay-will deprive Merck of possession and title to its personal property." "Under the IRA, the Government will requisition Merck's patented pharmaceutical products and transfer them to Medicare beneficiaries through forced sales," the complaint says. ![]() If companies do not comply, they face daily excise taxes that are several times higher than the drug's daily revenues, according to the lawsuit. QMB is an eligibility category under the Medicare Savings Programs. Merck said in its suit that HHS wields the law to force companies to enter into negotiations and dictate drug prices that are 25% to 60% below the medication's market price. (July 2018) QMB Billing Rules Q1: What is the Qualified Medicare Beneficiary (QMB) Program A1: The QMB program provides Medicaid coverage of Medicare Part A and Part B premiums and cost sharing to low income Medicare beneficiaries. The pharmaceutical industry fiercely opposed the law, arguing it will stifle new drug development. The Inflation Reduction Act, which became law last summer, was a major victory for President Joe Biden and Democrats in Congress, who long have pushed to empower Medicare to combat rising drug prices. Nearly 60 million Americans are enrolled in Medicare. "The law is on our side," said Becerra, whose department oversees Medicare, the federal health coverage program for older Americans and people with Social Security disability benefits. HHS Secretary Xavier Becerra, in response to Merck's suit, said, "We'll vigorously defend the President's drug price negotiation law, which is already lowering health care costs for seniors and people with disabilities." Personal Loans for 670 Credit Score or Lower ![]() Personal Loans for 580 Credit Score or Lower Best Debt Consolidation Loans for Bad Credit
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