02/06/2025
This is another reason why we need to keep Senator Tammy Baldwin in Congress. Read on:
Dear Carol,
Senator Baldwin has joined Senators Amy Klobuchar (D-MN) and Peter Welch (D-VT) to introduce the Strengthening Medicare and Reducing Taxpayer (SMART) Prices Act. The legislation would expand the number of drugs that Medicare can negotiate lower drug prices for, reduce federal spending, and give the Department of Health and Human Services stronger tools to negotiate lower drug prices in Medicare Part B and Part D.
“No Wisconsinite should be forced to forgo the medication they need to stay healthy because of cost,” said Senator Baldwin. “This bill will build on the progress we’ve made to give more Americans some breathing room – cracking down on greedy drug companies and helping ensure no Wisconsinite has to choose between affording their medication and putting food on the table.”
This legislation builds on the Baldwin-backed Inflation Reduction Act, which was passed into law in 2022, and empowered Medicare to negotiate prescription drug prices for the first time, unleashing the power of 53 million seniors enrolled in Medicare Part D Drug Coverage. The SMART Prices Act would extend this progress by more than doubling the number of prescription drugs Medicare must negotiate to a minimum of 50 per year, allowing the costliest prescription drugs to have negotiated prices five years after approval by the Food and Drug Administration, and by increasing the discount that Medicare is allowed to negotiate.
According to preliminary estimates from a model by West Health and Verdant Research, if the SMART Prices Act was enacted in 2026, it would save 33 percent more by 2030 than current law. It would also allow Medicare to begin negotiations earlier and bring down the price of more expensive drugs.
The bill is endorsed by Center for American Progress, FamiliesUSA, Patients For Affordable Drugs NOW, Protect Our Care, and Public Citizen.
