Wyden Hails Biden Administration Steps to Implement Price Gouging Penalties in Medicare

New Guidance from CMS Provides Details for Inflation Rebates in Medicare Parts B and D

Washington, D.C. – Senate Finance Committee Chair Ron Wyden, D-Ore., today released a statement after the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) issued new guidance regarding the implementation of the Inflation Reduction Act’s inflation rebate provisions, which are aimed at preventing price gouging by drug companies and will help lower out-of-pocket costs for medications covered by Medicare.

“I’m pleased to see CMS beginning this transformational Medicare policy to protect seniors from price gouging by drug companies,” Wyden said. “It’s long past time that seniors stop footing the bill for rip offs that pad Big Pharma’s profits. There have never been price gouging penalties in Medicare before, and I am confident that these policies are going to deliver real savings for Americans. Critically, price hike rebates in Medicare Part B, which pays for drugs administered in the doctor’s office, will go straight to lowering seniors’ coinsurance later this spring. This is just one of the ways the Inflation Reduction Act is lowering costs for Americans.” 

This guidance outlines proposed requirements and procedures for implementing the Medicare Prescription Drug Inflation Rebate Program, including specific details on how rebate amounts will be calculated and invoiced to manufacturers. Public comments are due on March 11, 2023.

Last week, Wyden requested that the agency make public additional information about the implementation of the Inflation Reduction Act’s drug pricing provisions related to inflation rebates in Medicare Parts B and D, wherein drug companies pay a penalty to Medicare if the price of their drug increases faster than the rate of inflation.

A fact sheet on the new guidance from CMS can be found here. The guidance can be found here.

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