Medicare recipients to see prescription savings amid price hikes

WASHINGTON (Nexstar) – Starting April 1, seniors on Medicare may see some savings on certain prescription medications thanks to a law congress passed in 2022.

“If they try to increase the price beyond the rate of inflation, then we get to yank back those extra dollars,” Department of Health and Human Services Secretary Xavier Beccera said.

The secretary said the department will return that money to Medicare -- helping the 67 million people enrolled in the program. Becerra said, so far, 27 drugs are under review because their prices increased too much.

While a rebate could take time, Medicare recipients will start saving on their co-insurance for those medications in April as much as $390 dollars per dose.

“The drugs that are on this list are drugs that are administered by physicians, either in a doctor's office or in a hospital,” said Juliette Cubanski of the Kaiser Family Foundation.

The administration says the list of drugs could expand and Cubanski says everyone could end up benefitting from this new provision.

“There is an incentive for them to sort of keep their prices, or their price increases, below the rate of inflation,” Cubanksi said.

Because of the Inflation Reduction Act President Biden signed in 2022, Medicare recipients can also expect more savings in the coming months and years like negotiated drug prices and a $2,000 cap on out pocket expenses for prescription drugs in 2025.