The U.S. Department of Health and Human Services has announced moves to safeguard consumers against subpar health insurance, unexpected medical expenses and excessive charges that result in medical debt, the agency said in a news release.
“The Biden-Harris Administration continues to take action to lower costs for millions of Americans and improve health outcomes across the nation," HHS Secretary Xavier Becerra said in a statement. "Today’s announcement protects patients from junk health insurance and unfair billing practices, and increases transparency in our health care system, while continuing to implement President Biden’s historic prescription drug law that is lowering costs for millions of seniors across the country. The Biden-Harris Administration is committed to helping seniors and people with disabilities save money on the medications they need and ensuring hardworking families have insurance when they need it.”
The initiatives support the Biden-Harris Administration's efforts to reduce the cost of health care for American families and seniors by doing away with hidden fees in every sphere of the economy, the agency said.
HHS also unveiled a new report estimating that when President Biden's lower cost prescription drug law, part of the Inflation Reduction Act, takes effect in 2025, nearly 19 million seniors will save about $400 annually on prescription drug costs. The revelation comes after steps last week that advanced historic legal provisions allowing Medicare to bargain over the cost of prescription drugs and capping the monthly cost of each insulin pump that is covered by Medicare at $35.
“The Biden-Harris Administration’s efforts to make health care more affordable are life-changing for millions of Americans," Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services Administrator Chiquita Brooks-LaSure said in a statement. "No one should go bankrupt trying to get and keep themself or their family healthy. CMS is committed to a more transparent, fair, and accountable health system for the people we serve. We will continue to clarify consumer rights under the No Surprises Act, work to better understand the impact of medical debt, and limit non-comprehensive junk insurance plans.”
The prescription drug law is already saving some seniors and persons with disabilities hundreds of dollars yearly, the news release said.
In 2025, when the provisions of the law are put into effect, more than 18.7 million enrollees, or roughly one in three people with Medicare Part D, may see a decrease in out-of-pocket expenses of close to $400, according to a new Office of the Assistant Secretary for Planning and Evaluation (ASPE) report. According to the research, 1.9 million of these registrants are expected to save at least $1,000 by 2025. By the time all of the measures projected in this research take effect in 2025, yearly out-of-pocket spending will have decreased by nearly $7.4 billion. The analysis released today also offers predicted savings for Medicare members in 2024 and 2025, broken down by state.
