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Medicare Part B Premium Hike To Accommodate Alzheimer’s Drug Costs Is Premature – Sen. Wyden

 
• By Cathy Kelly

Unprecedented increase spotlights how drug costs could drain Medicare, but Senate Finance Committee chair, a prominent pricing critic, urges waiting until Alzheimer’s coverage policy comes out before raising premiums so high. Draft policy is on track for January release, CMS official says.

Wyden Agrees Aduhelm's Cost Too High But Doesn't Want Higher Premiums • Source: Alamy

The Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services should reduce its planned 14.5% Medicare Part B monthly premium increase for 2022 until it has a better idea of how much it will actually spend on Biogen, Inc./Eisai Co., Ltd.’s Aduhelm and similar Alzheimer’s drugs, according to Senate Finance Committee chairman Ron Wyden, D-Ore.

CMS announced the unprecedented increase in November, explaining that about half of the premium hike will go toward setting up a contingency fund to help pay for the Alzheimer’s drugs

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Industry On Making England’s HTA Innovation Lab A Success

 
• By Eliza Slawther

England’s health technology assessment institute, NICE, must ensure that there is clarity for manufacturers on how its methods and processes might change following testing in its sandbox environment, the Association of the British Pharmaceutical Industry said.

House Budget Bill Includes Delayed Orphan Fix, Also Risks Downstream Cell and Gene Coverage

 
• By Sarah Karlin-Smith

The first two classes of negotiated drugs under the Inflation Reduction Act would not benefit from a rare disease adjustment House Republicans included in their reconciliation package.

Trump’s Rx Pricing Order: The Best-Case And Worst-Case Scenarios

 
• By Derrick Gingery

US trade and tariff leverage might successfully push European and other countries to pay more for medicines, but if not, President Trump’s executive order includes potential US drug withdrawal and other options to entice industry to lower US prices.

Medicare Negotiation Does Not Violate Due Process, Appeals Court Rules, Other Suits At Risk

 
• By Cathy Kelly

Decision in AstraZeneca’s lawsuit against the Health and Human Services Department is a precedent-setting victory for the government and a blow to manufacturer efforts to block the price negotiation program.

More from Pink Sheet

House Budget Bill Includes Delayed Orphan Fix, Also Risks Downstream Cell and Gene Coverage

 
• By Sarah Karlin-Smith

The first two classes of negotiated drugs under the Inflation Reduction Act would not benefit from a rare disease adjustment House Republicans included in their reconciliation package.

Trump’s Rx Pricing Order: The Best-Case And Worst-Case Scenarios

 
• By Derrick Gingery

US trade and tariff leverage might successfully push European and other countries to pay more for medicines, but if not, President Trump’s executive order includes potential US drug withdrawal and other options to entice industry to lower US prices.

International Group Aims To Shape The Inevitable Future Of AI In Pharmacovigilance

 
• By Urtė Fultinavičiūtė

Pharmacovigilance is a perfect rule-based and manual work-intensive playground for experimenting with AI. While some off-patent drug firms are already exploring new automation tools, regulation is lagging behind, leaving a gap for uncertainty.