I remembered reading about this back in early March of this year. Here is the article from the the NYT.
Groups Scrutinize White House Plan to Cut Drug Costs in Medicare
By ROBERT PEAR, MARCH 9, 2016
Under the proposal, announced Tuesday, Medicare would try a half-dozen new ways of paying for prescription drugs in Part B of Medicare, under which $20 billion was spent last year on medications administered in doctors’ offices and hospital outpatient departments.
The announcement is only a proposal for a test, but it has huge implications for the pharmaceutical industry, especially for the big, fast-growing category of specialty drugs known as biologics. The proposal could, for the first time, link Medicare payments to the effectiveness of a drug and the cost of comparable medications — factors not normally considered in the current reimbursement formula, which is based on the average sales price of drugs, with an additional 6 percent allowance for storage and handling costs.
snip
Two influential lobbies, the Pharmaceutical Research and Manufacturers of America and the Biotechnology Innovation Organization, strenuously opposed the administration’s plan, saying it could put Medicare patients at risk. Prices for new cancer drugs often exceed $100,000 a year, and it is not unusual to see television commercials and magazine advertisements promoting such treatments.
Dr. Allen S. Lichter, the chief executive of the American Society of Clinical Oncology, which represents cancer doctors, said the administration had identified a real problem, “the skyrocketing prices of drugs.” But he added, “Doctors did not create this problem, and it will not be solved by putting pressure on physicians.”
http://www.nytimes.com/2016/03/10/us/politics/groups-scrutinize-white-house-plan-to-cut-drug-costs-in-medicare.html
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