In Executive Order, Biden Directs CMMI to Tackle Drug Costs

In an executive order released Oct. 14, the Biden administration directed the CMS Center for Medicare and Medicaid Innovation (CMMI) to “to consider additional actions to further drive down prescription drug costs,” building on the Medicare drug price negotiation stipulations of the Inflation Reduction Act (IRA). D.C. insiders tell AIS Health, a division of MMIT, that CMMI could pull old policy proposals off the shelf when it works to “test new ways of paying for Medicare services that improve the quality of care while lowering costs,” as the administration puts it. 

The executive order isn’t specific about what policies the White House would prefer CMMI look into. However, the administration will know the possibilities fairly soon: CMMI will have 90 days to develop recommendations. Per a White House fact sheet, the final product will be “a formal report outlining any plans to use the Innovation Center’s authorities to lower drug costs and promote access to innovative drug therapies for Medicare beneficiaries.”