Biden Admin Lowers Prices on Dozens of Drugs

Biden Administration to Reduce Prices on Dozens of Prescription Drugs in Medicare

The Biden administration announced Wednesday that it will reduce the prices of 64 prescription drugs for Medicare enrollees as part of its effort to combat soaring pharmaceutical costs.

The price reduction will take effect between July 1 and September 30, 2024, benefiting roughly 750,000 seniors who access the applicable drugs through Medicare Part B. The list of drugs affected includes treatments for osteoporosis, cancer and infections.

A provision in the Inflation Reduction Act, which President Joe Biden signed into law in 2022 after it passed through Congress despite opposition from all Republican lawmakers, gives the federal government the power to impose penalties on drugmakers who raise their prices faster than the rate of inflation. The penalties take the form of rebates paid by manufacturers, which the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services will use to reduce prices for end users in the Medicare system.

According to the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, the savings for individual patients could range between $1 and $4,593 per day during the period when the rebates are in effect.

"Without the Inflation Reduction Act, seniors were completely exposed to Big Pharma’s price hikes. Not anymore," said White House Domestic Policy Advisor Neera Tanden. "Thanks to President Biden and the new Medicare inflation rebate program, seniors are protected and benefitting from lower Part B drug costs."

‘Unconscionable’ Delays at the IRS: Watchdog

The latest report to Congress by the National Taxpayer Advocate says that while the IRS had made great strides in improving taxpayer services, there are still serious problems at the tax agency, including "unconscionable" delays in resolving identity theft cases.

The independent watchdog found that the IRS had about 500,000 unresolved identity theft cases as of the end of April. These cases typically involve fraudulent tax filings in which thieves attempt to claim refunds owed to legitimate taxpayers. When such filings are suspected, the IRS freezes all of the returns involved, leaving taxpayers in limbo as the tax agency attempts to figure out who is legitimate and who is fraudulent – a process that can take nearly two years.

"These delays are particularly challenging for low-income taxpayers who may rely on these refunds to pay their day-to-day living expenses or expenses accrued throughout the year, such as medical bills," the report says. "In addition, these identity theft victims may struggle to secure certain kinds of loans, such as mortgages."

Still, the IRS says its performance in identity theft cases has improved since 2020. And more generally, the tax agency’s performance during the 2024 tax season suggests that it is moving in the right direction.

"Not to be overly dramatic, but during the last four years, I believe we have progressed from a place of despair to a place of hope and optimism for the future of the agency and therefore for taxpayers," said Erin M. Collins, who leads the watchdog organization.

In the Inflation Reduction Act, Congress provided the IRS with an extra $80 billion spread over 10 years to improve its technology and hire more staff, but about $20 billion of that has been clawed back, and Republican lawmakers have vowed to reduce the funding even further. A recent inspector general report cited by Alan Rappeport of The New York Times said the IRS has spent about $5.7 billion of the funding so far, though some of that money went toward basic operating expenses rather than long-term improvements.

Number of the Day: $190 Billion

Congress spent about $190 billion on schools during the coronavirus pandemic, and two new studies highlighted in The Wall Street Journal and The Washington Post Wednesday found that the money helped students recover some of the academic ground they lost during that chaotic time.

"There were many reasons to think the money wouldn’t have a very big effect on kids learning because it wasn’t targeted and there were lots of other needs," Sean Reardon, an education researcher at Stanford University and co-author of one of the papers, told the Post. "But in fact it did have a significant effect on learning."

Students, however, are still behind where they would have been in the absence of the great pandemic disturbance. With the federal money running out or already spent in most districts, lawmakers will need to decide whether any further additional investment is necessary.

Fiscal News Roundup

Views and Analysis

• 21 Questions for the Next President That Have No Easy Answers – Washington Post Columnists
• Student Loan Rulings Highlight Unaccountable Judicial Power—Again – David Dayen, American Prospect
• Biden Loses Again on Student Loan Forgiveness – Wall Street Journal Editorial Board
• Bond Market in Step With Fed Is About to Slam Into US Election – Liz Capo McCormick and Michael Mackenzie, Bloomberg
• The Real Reason to Worry About the Huge US Budget Deficit – Bill Dudley, Bloomberg
• The Debate: Preseason Is Over – David Winston, Roll Call
• Trump’s Shameless, Corrupt Wooing of Plutocrats Is Suddenly Backfiring – Greg Sargent, New Republic
• Federal Workers Are Going Back to the Office — Any Year Now – Marc Fisher, Washington Post
• Federal Budget Constraints May Hurt Older Americans With HIV – Sam Whitehead and McKenzie Beard, Washington Post