Lower Drug Costs for Families Act
Lower Drug Costs for Families Act
Plain Language Summary
# Lower Drug Costs for Families Act Summary **What It Does:** This bill would extend Medicare's drug rebate requirements to private health insurance plans. Currently, drug manufacturers must provide rebates to Medicare when brand-name drugs cost $100+ annually and their prices rise faster than inflation. The bill would apply these same rebate requirements to prescription drugs sold through private insurance, meaning manufacturers would need to provide rebates to private insurers under similar conditions.
The bill also changes the baseline year used to calculate rebates from 2021 back to 2016. **Who It Affects:** The bill primarily affects drug manufacturers, private health insurance companies, and people with private insurance coverage. By expanding rebate requirements, it aims to lower out-of-pocket drug costs for individuals with private insurance plans, similar to protections already in place for Medicare beneficiaries. **Current Status:** The bill (S. 1186) was introduced in the 119th Congress by Senator Catherine Cortez Masto (D-Nevada) and is currently in committee, meaning it has not yet been debated or voted on by the full Senate.
CRS Official Summary
Lower Drug Costs for Families Act This bill applies certain Medicare prescription drug rebate requirements to prescription drugs that are available under private health insurance. Current law requires drug manufacturers to issue rebates to the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services for brand-name drugs without generic equivalents under Medicare that (1) cost $100 or more per year per individual, and (2) for which prices increase faster than inflation. Manufacturers that fail to comply are subject to civil penalties. The bill applies these requirements to prescription drugs that are available in the commercial market under private health insurance. It also indexes rebate calculations to drug prices in 2016 (as opposed to 2021).
Latest Action
Read twice and referred to the Committee on Finance.