Ensuring Access to Lower-Cost Medicines for Seniors Act
Sen. Lankford and Sen. Hassan Introduce Bill to Force Medicare Plans to Cover Cheaper Generic Drugs
This bill is currently in the early stages of the legislative process after being sent to the Senate Committee on Finance for review. It is considered active, but no further hearings or votes have been scheduled at this time. There is no companion bill currently associated with this legislation.
Legislative Progress
The bill has support from both parties, which helps it move forward. However, it still needs to pass through committees where many bills get stuck.
Key Points
Impact Analysis
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Life & Work
Generic drug manufacturers and smaller pharmaceutical companies that produce biosimilars could see increased market access. By requiring formulary inclusion when their products cost less than the brand-name version, these companies gain guaranteed shelf space in Medicare drug plans that currently may exclude them in favor of brand-name drugs with larger rebates.
“the formulary shall include each part D generic drug of such part D reference drug for which the wholesale acquisition cost is less than the wholesale acquisition cost of such part D reference drug.”
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Read twice and referred to the Committee on Finance.
Sent to a congressional committee for expert review. The committee decides whether this bill moves forward.
Introduced in Senate
The bill was officially filed and given a number. It now enters the legislative queue.
Votes
No votes have been recorded for this legislation yet.
Related News
4 articles
Cheap Prescriptions… Maybe.
Lawmakers are attempting to make 'generic means cheaper' actually mean something again. James Lankford has teamed up with Maggie Hassan to introduce the Ensuring Access to Lower-Cost Medicines for Seniors Act. The bipartisan effort aims to fix a system where seniors pay more for generic drugs.
Bipartisan Bill to Lower Costs for Generic Drugs in Medicare Part D
Senators James Lankford (R-Okla.) and Maggie Hassan (D-N.H.) introduced the Ensuring Access to Lower-Cost Medicines for Seniors Act, which would require Part D plans to cover cheaper generic options and establish clear pricing tiers to lower out-of-pocket costs for seniors.
MATSUI UNVEILS BIPARTISAN BILL TO LOWER PRESCRIPTION DRUG COSTS FOR SENIORS
Congresswoman Doris Matsui and Reps. Miller-Meeks and Auchincloss introduced the Ensuring Access to Lower-Cost Medicines for Seniors Act. The bill requires Medicare Part D plans to place lower-cost generic drugs on more affordable tiers and prevents plans from using prior authorization roadblocks.
Source Information
Document Type
Congressional Bill
Official Title
Ensuring Access to Lower-Cost Medicines for Seniors Act
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