15 Costly Medicare Drugs Selected for Next Round of Price Negotiations

The list includes popular medications that treat diabetes, cancer, COPD, arthritis and IBS

Rachel Nania,

AARP

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En español

Published January 17, 2025

Rob Dobi

Medicare has chosen 15 prescription medications for price negotiations this year, building off a first round of negotiations for 10 drugs whose lower prices take effect in 2026. The newly selected medications are among the costliest for Medicare’s prescription drug program — accounting for about $41 billion in total Medicare Part D spending — and are used by about 5.3 million enrollees to treat common conditions such as cancer, diabetes and asthma.

Negotiations with drug manufacturers on this second round of medications will take place throughout 2025 and the new prices will take effect in 2027. The negotiated prices will be announced by Nov. 30, and soon after, Medicare will select additional medications for a third round of negotiations, with more to follow.

On the new list are Ozempic, Wegovy and Rybelsus, all of which use the same active ingredient (semaglutide) and are prescribed to treat type 2 diabetes, weight loss and cardiovascular disease. Several cancer drugs were also selected, and so were medications that treat asthma and COPD (chronic obstructive pulmonary disease).

The 15 prescription drugs picked by Medicare for price negotiations are:

Ozempic; Rybelsus; Wegovy (type 2 diabetes, other indications)
Trelegy Ellipta (COPD, asthma)
Xtandi (cancer)
Pomalyst (cancer)
Ibrance (cancer)
Ofev (chronic lung diseases)
Linzess (inflammatory bowel disease)
Calquence (cancer)
Austedo; Austedo XR (Huntington’s disease)
Breo Ellipta (COPD, asthma)
Tradjenta (type 2 diabetes)
Xifaxan (irritable bowel syndrome, diarrhea)
Vraylar (depression, bipolar disorder, schizophrenia)
Janumet; Janumet XR (type 2 diabetes)
Otezla (psoriasis, psoriatic arthritis)

For a number of older adults, these negotiations are a “big deal,” said U.S. Health and Human Services Secretary Xavier Becerra. “Some folks have to cut their pills in half or skip a dose in their prescription so that they can make their prescription last longer until they can afford to buy the next batch of drugs,” he said in a news briefing.

A 2024 survey from AARP found that nearly half of people report not filling a prescription due to its cost, or knowing someone who has done so. On average, prices for several of the 15 medications selected by Medicare for negotiation have nearly doubled since they first became available (an average of 11 years ago), a new report from AARP finds. Many of their price increases have exceeded the rate of inflation.

‘Seniors are finally starting to see relief from high drug prices’

This announcement marks the second time Medicare will enter negotiations with drugmakers — an authority given to the vital health care program for older Americans in the 2022 prescription drug law, backed by AARP.

The first round of price negotiations took place last year and applied to 10 prescription drugs that treat conditions such as diabetes, heart disease and arthritis. The lower negotiated prices for these 10 drugs are expected to save Medicare prescription drug plan enrollees a collective $1.5 billion in out-of-pocket expenses when they take effect in 2026.

This latest list of 15 drugs selected by Medicare, along with the 10 drugs that Medicare already negotiated, represent one-third of Medicare Part D spending on prescription drugs, health officials said.

“For too long, big drug companies have padded their profits by setting outrageous prices at the expense of American lives, forcing seniors to skip prescriptions they can’t afford,” said Nancy LeaMond, AARP executive vice president and chief advocacy and engagement officer. “The first round of Medicare drug price negotiation made it clear that this process will reduce the prices of these important products and create billions of dollars in savings for Medicare and its beneficiaries.”

Manufacturers of selected drugs have until Feb. 28 to decide if they will participate in negotiations for this year. As part of the 2022 prescription drug law, the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) will select up to 15 more drugs for the third cycle of price negotiations in 2026 (including drugs that are often administered in a hospital or doctor’s office, as well as the medications you fill at the pharmacy and take at home), and up to 20 more drugs for each annual cycle after that.

With these price negotiations and other cost-saving provisions in the AARP-backed law, including a new annual cap on out-of-pocket prescription drug expenses that will benefit an estimated 3.2 million Part D enrollees, “people suffering from conditions such as diabetes and cancer won’t have to choose between life-saving medications and other basic needs,” said CMS Administrator Chiquita Brooks-LaSure.

“With Medicare negotiating lower prices on more drugs and the new out-of-pocket cap, seniors are finally starting to see relief from high drug prices,” AARP’s LeaMond said.

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