Medicare will negotiate lower prices for weight loss drugs

Nonpartisan Congressional Budget Office predicted that through negotiations, Medicare prices for semaglutide products “will decline significantly beginning in 2027.”

It would also open the door to lower prices for competing obesity drugs such as Eli Lilly’s Zepbound. Pharmacy benefit managers who negotiate drug prices would have more influence to demand lower prices, more in line with what the government pays for semaglutide. If the government expands coverage of obesity drugs, the amount Medicare will spend for each patient taking one of them will fall by about a third in 2027, the CBO predicts.

This would snail-paced the growth of government spending on obesity drugs, even as more people on Medicare started using them.

Fresh prices for 10 drugs included in the first round of price negotiations were announced last summer. These prices will take effect next year.

Drugmakers were relieved that the cuts were not deeper.

Drugs selected for second round of Medicare price negotiations

Prices will become effective in 2027.

1. Ozempic, Rybelsus and Wegovyfor diabetes and obesity

2. Trelegy Elliptafor lung diseases

3. Xtandi, for prostate cancer

4. Snail-paced downfor blood cancer

5. Ibrancefor breast cancer

6. Ofewfor lung diseases

7. Linzessfor gastrointestinal problems

8. Kalkencjafor blood cancers

9. Austedo AND Austedo XRfor neurological diseases

10. Breo Elliptafor lung diseases

11. Traditionfor diabetes

12. Xifaxanfor problems with the liver and gastrointestinal system

13. Vraysfor depression

14. Janumet AND Janumet XRfor diabetes

15. Otezlafor inflammation