Out-of-Pocket Costs

The Inflation Reduction Act (IRA) authorizes the Secretary of the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) to negotiate prices directly with participating manufacturers for selected drugs that have high total spending and are high expenditure, single source drugs without generic or biosimilar competition.

Introduction

Expanding access to high-quality, affordable health care has been a priority of the Biden-Harris Administration.

Prescription drug shortages are an ongoing concern in the United States (U.S.). While prior analyses explore the frequency of drug shortages in the U.S., little is known about the extent to which U.S. shortages impact consumer costs and healthcare systems. Drug shortages impact consumer costs in various ways.

Effective January 1, 2023, the Inflation Reduction Act (IRA) eliminated enrollee cost-sharing for recommended vaccines covered under Medicare Part D. In 2021, 3.4 million people received vaccines under Part D, and annual out-of-pocket costs were $234 million.

This posting includes a report prepared by the RAND Corporation, “State All Payer Claims Databases Understanding the Current Landscape and Challenges to Use,” which builds on a 2021 report “The History, Promise and Challenges of State All Payer Claims Databases.” The new report provides additional detail on the objectives of and use cases for APCDs, the current APCD landscape, and implementati

This report provides estimates of Medicare Parts A, B, and D savings from the Affordable Care Act to seniors and people living with disabilities enrolled in traditional Medicare.

This Issue Brief provides estimates of Medicare Parts A, B, and D savings from the Affordable Care Act to seniors and people living with disabilities enrolled in traditional Medicare.