HFMA NEWS

Using confidential information on drug prices to compare the costs of drugs purchased under the Medicare Part D program with the costs of drugs purchased under traditional Medicaid, the House Committee on Oversight and Government Reform found that Medicare Part D pays on average 30 percent more for drugs than does Medicaid, resulting in a windfall worth more than $3.7 billion for drug manufacturers in the first two years of the Medicare Part D program. The report, Medicare Part D: Drug Pricing and Manufacturer Windfalls, was released July 24.

The report examined drug benefit spending for about 6 million dual eligibles. In 2006, the first year of the drug benefit, Medicare paid $1.7 billion more for the 100 most commonly used drugs by dual eligibles than Medicaid would have paid. In 2007, Medicare paid about $2 billion more than Medicaid would have paid. Medicaid, on average, gets discounts of about 30 percent on drugs for beneficiaries. Medicare receives a discount of about 8 percent on average through its drug benefit. Read the report.

The Health Resources and Services Administration (HRSA) announced July 23 that it had received many substantive comments on its proposed rule changing how it designates medically underserved populations and health professional shortage areas. Based on a preliminary review of the comments, HRSA said it will need to make a number of changes in the proposed rule, and will issue a new proposed rule for further review and public comment prior to issuing a final rule.

On Feb. 29, 2008, HHS first published its proposed rule on this matter. The initial notice provided a 60-day comment period, but due to the level of interest in the proposed rule, two 30-day extensions of the comment period were published in the Federal Register, one in April and the second in June. Read the announcement.