The Medicare prescription drug pricing plan Democrats unveiled this week is not almost as formidable as many lawmakers sought, however they and drug coverage consultants say the provisions crack open the door to reforms that might have dramatic results.
Tamping down drug bills has been a longtime rallying cry for customers beset by quickly rising costs. Though individuals in personal plans had some protections, these on Medicare usually didn’t. They’d no out-of-pocket caps and continuously complained that federal regulation saved them from utilizing drugmakers’ coupons or different cost-cutting methods.
A plan supplied earlier this 12 months by Home Democrats —