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Medicare is a national health insurance program in the United States, begun in 1966 under the Social Security Administration (SSA) and now administered by the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS). It primarily provides health insurance for Americans aged 65 and older, but also for some younger people with disability status as determined by the SSA, and people with end stage renal disease and amyotrophic lateral sclerosis.
Prescription drug prices in the United States continually rank among the highest in the world. The high cost of prescription drugs became a major topic of discussion in the 21st century, leading up to the U.S. health care reform debate of 2009, and received renewed attention in 2015. A major reason for high prescription drug prices in the United States relative to other countries is the inability of government-granted monopolies in the U.S. health care sector to use their bargaining power to negotiate lower prices. The Democratic Party is broadly in favor of allowing the government to negotiate drug prices, whereas the Republican Party has prevented passage of bills that would permit that.
The Medicare Prescription Drug, Improvement, and Modernization Act, also called the Medicare Modernization Act or MMA, is a federal law of the United States, enacted in 2003. It produced the largest overhaul of Medicare in the public health program's 38-year history.
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California Proposition 79 (2005) was an initiative in the November 8, 2005 elections that covers the areas of Prescription Drug Discounts and State-Negotiated Rebates.
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The 340B Drug Pricing Program is a US federal government program created in 1992 that requires drug manufacturers to provide outpatient drugs to eligible health care organizations and covered entities at significantly reduced prices. The intent of the program is to allow covered entities to "[s]tretch scarce federal resources as far as possible, reaching more eligible patients and providing more comprehensive services." Maintaining services and lowering medication costs for patients is consistent with the purpose of the program, which is named for the section authorizing it in the Public Health Service Act (PHSA) It was enacted by Congress as part of a larger bill signed into law by President George H. W. Bush.
The Affordable Care Act (ACA) is divided into 10 titles and contains provisions that became effective immediately, 90 days after enactment, and six months after enactment, as well as provisions phased in through to 2020. Below are some of the key provisions of the ACA. For simplicity, the amendments in the Health Care and Education Reconciliation Act of 2010 are integrated into this timeline.
References
- 1 2 "Medicaid Drug Rebate Program". Medicaid.gov. Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services. Archived from the original on 11 September 2020. Retrieved 27 September 2020.
- ↑ History of the Medicaid Drug Rebate Program Archived 2006-09-27 at the Wayback Machine , U.S. Department of Health & Human Services.
- ↑ "Exploring the Growth of Medicaid Managed Care". Congressional Budget Office. Congressional Budget Office. Retrieved 27 September 2020.
- ↑ Health Care Budget Options, Volume 1 (December 2008), Congressional Budget Office
- ↑ President's Budget for FY2010 Office of Management and Budget