Oak Hill, WV (CNN) – Big pharma and the government will begin to haggle over the prices of some of the costliest drugs for millions of older adults.
The Centers for Medicare and Medicaid service will present an opening offer to drugmakers on the prices of ten medications on Thursday.
They include drugs for heart disease, certain cancers, diabetes, autoimmune diseases, and other conditions.
Mandated by the Inflation Reduction Act, the meeting marks the first time that Medicare has been able to negotiate with drug manufacturers over prices.
The negotiations will last through August 1.
Final prices will be announced on September 1 but won’t go into effect until 20-26.
Pharmaceutical companies are pushing back, calling the negotiations “unconstitutional.”
The Biden administration faces several lawsuits over the program.
