Health

The list of drug prices to be negotiated by Medicare are among the most costly in Maine

Maine Public | By Patty Wight

Published August 29, 2023 at 5:21 PM EDT

Retiree Donna Weiner shows some of the daily prescription medications that she needs and pays over $6,000 a year through a Medicare prescription drug plan at her home, Tuesday, Oct. 5, 2021, in Longwood, Fla. Weiner supports giving Medicare authority to negotiate drug prices. Negotiating Medicare drug prices is the linchpin of President Joe Biden's ambitious health care agenda. Not only would consumers see lower costs, but savings would be plowed into other priorities such as dental coverage for retirees and lower premiums for people with plans under the Obama-era health law.

Tens of thousands of Medicare enrollees in Maine could see lower drug prices as the result of the federal government's announcement Tuesday that it will negotiate the price of 10 medications.

The drugs included on the list treat conditions such as diabetes, blood clots, cancer, and arthritis. And Kate Ende of Maine-based Consumers for Affordable Health Care says the fact that their prices will now be negotiated is a historic achievement.

"The majority of the drugs that are on the list that CMS put out are also in the top 25 most costly drugs in Maine," she said.

Ende says the average price per prescription in Maine for one of the drugs, Stelara, is $25,000 dollars

The negotiations to lower prices will take at least a year, and they're slated to go into effect in 2026. But pharmaceutical companies are challenging the program in court.