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Inside the DIY Ozempic boom<\/p>\n
Americans are cooking up their own Ozempic\u2014here\u2019s why that\u2019s alarming.<\/p>\n
The Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services announced Nov. 25 that Medicaid<\/a> recipients will pay less for 15 prescription drugs, including popular weight loss medications Ozempic and Wegovy<\/a>, asthma treatments and chemotherapy drugs.<\/p>\n Changes go into effect in 2027.<\/p>\n In 2024 the negotiated drugs accounted for about $42.5 billion in prescription spending for the about 5.3 million people with Medicare Part D coverage, according to a news release.<\/a> A fact sheet<\/a> issued with the announcement says Medicare will save about $12 billion in costs once the new pricing kicks in and that Part D recipients will save about $685 million in out-of-pocket costs.<\/p>\n The reduced prices were negotiated through the Medicare Drug Price Negotiation Program <\/a>created by the Inflation Reduction Act signed into law under the Biden administration<\/a> in 2022. The Trump administration<\/a> has previously announced drug price reductions through executive orders<\/a> and negotiations with drug makers.<\/a><\/p>\n The legislation ordered the health secretary to negotiate reduced prices for 10 drugs to take effect in 2026, 15 drugs to take effect in 2027, another 15 drugs with prices taking effect in 2028. Pricing for 20 more drugs will take effect in 2029, according to congressional analysis<\/a>. The drugs negotiated to have price reductions in 2027 and 2028 will only apply to drugs under Medicare Part D.<\/p>\n Stacie Dusetzina, a health policy professor at Vanderbilt University, told NBC News that the negotiated prices “look very reasonable<\/a>” but noted that the $274 price tag for Ozempic and Wegovy is higher than the $250 price\u00a0the Trump administration negotiated in a deal with maker Novo Nordisk.<\/p>\n “They should\u2019ve gotten that deal for the taxpayers and the Medicare beneficiaries,\u201d Dusetzina said.<\/p>\n Savings outpace 2024 negotiations<\/p>\n The projected 2027 savings of 36% is better than the 22% savings of net spending, according to an estimate from Goldman Sachs, that\u00a0Medicare\u00a0achieved with last year’s first round of price negotiations for 10 different drugs.<\/p>\n CMS Administrator Mehmet Oz said in the news release that the new negotiations stood in “stark contrast” to those that took place in 2024. \u201cUsing the same process with a bolder direction, we have achieved substantially better outcomes for taxpayers and seniors in the Medicare Part D program,” Oz said.<\/p>\n