President Trump’s plan to lower drug prices would ban for Medicare’s prescription drug program a “gag rule” that prevents pharmacists from informing consumers about cheaper ways to pay for drugs.
The change affects plans only on Medicare Part D. A federal effort to ban gag rules for all health plans has languished in Congress.
“This is a total rip-off, and we are ending it,” Trump said in a speech in the White House Rose Garden Friday afternoon.
Under the gag rule, the pharmacy benefit manager, which buys pharmaceuticals for an employer or union-sponsored health plan, tells the pharmacy that it cannot tell the consumer that the product is cheaper if he pays for it with cash rather than using insurance.
Lawmakers have howled that the “gag rule” helps inflate drug costs for consumers.
The Trump administration’s action would affect only the 35 million seniors on Medicare Part D.
Federal action would be needed to prohibit the “gag rules” for employer or individual market plans. A bipartisan group of senators introduced legislation this year to end the practice.
Meanwhile, some states are taking aim. Maryland’s Republican Gov. Larry Hogan recently signed into law a bill eliminating the practice.
