As insurers have shifted more of the cost of medicines to the sickest patients, payment assistance from drug manufacturers has become a godsend for millions of Americans. But now, the Trump Administration has put that assistance, which comes in the form of popular co-pay coupons and cards, in serious jeopardy.
The Centers for Medicare and Medicare Services (CMS) has proposed a convoluted rule in the Federal Register that will discourage drug manufacturers from providing billions of dollars’ worth of help with deductibles, co-pays, and co-insurance. While the rule would apply to calculations of Medicaid drug prices, the burden would fall on commercial plans, which insure half of American families. Unlike more visible proposals the White House announced July 24 with great fanfare, this one could actually be enacted in the next few months.
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