While Congress laid out the broad principles for Medicare to negotiate “maximum fair” prices for drugs, much of the process and details were left to the CMS to develop this year ahead of negotiations starting in 2024 for a first set of 10 medicines.
That initial group of drugs will be announced “no later than” Sept. 1, 2023, the guidance states, indicating the list could be made available earlier than implied in an initial timeline. The CMS can negotiate prices for up to 140 drugs by 2033, starting with only self-administered Part D drugs in 2026 and 2027, then adding physician-administered Part B therapies in 2028.
