How to tell if Biden drove a hard bargain on drug prices

WASHINGTON — The deadline for announcing how much Medicare lowered drug prices in the first year of negotiation is Sept. 1, just ahead of U.S. elections. Here are four ways to tell whether the Biden administration got a good deal.

In 2022, Democrats directed Medicare to negotiate drug prices for the first time as part of the Inflation Reduction Act. The first 10 drugs selected for negotiation accounted for $3.4 billion in out-of-pocket costs for an estimated 9 million Medicare enrollees in 2022, according to the Biden administration.

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Majorities of voters in both parties support Medicare drug price negotiation. No Republicans voted for the law, making it a potentially good campaign issue for Democrats.

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