Kaine Celebrates Medicare’s Historic Drug Negotiation Made Possible by The Inflation Reduction Act

WASHINGTON, D.C. – Today, U.S. Senator Tim Kaine, a member of the Senate Health, Education, Labor and Pensions (HELP) Committee, released the following statement regarding Medicare’s first-ever drug negotiation, following the Biden-Harris Administration’s announcement of new negotiated prices for 10 drugs for patients covered by Medicare Part D. The negotiated prices—including discounts of up to 79%—will save America’s seniors $1.5 billion and the federal budget $6 billion in the first year of implementation and were made possible by the Inflation Reduction Act (IRA), which Kaine cast a deciding vote for. Kaine celebrated the news at a press conference in Henrico, where he was joined by Protect Our Care Virginia and Virginians who have benefited from the IRA.

Photos of today’s event are available here.

“I’m proud to have cast a deciding vote for the Inflation Reduction Act (IRA), which gave Medicare the power to negotiate drug prices for the very first time,” said Kaine. “I promised Virginians to fight for negotiated prices when I first ran for the Senate and this breakthrough will save America’s seniors $1.5 billion and the federal budget $6 billion in the first year of implementation. And it’s only the beginning—Medicare will negotiate the prices of dozens more drugs in the coming years thanks to the IRA. I will continue to do all that I can to ensure that the many provisions of this legislation designed to lower health care prices are enacted effectively and to push for additional steps to cut costs and expand access to care.”

The ten drugs included in today’s announcement are among those with highest total spending in Medicare Part D. The new, negotiated prices will go into effect in 2026. In addition to the 10 drugs included in Medicare’s first round of negotiations, dozens of other drugs will enter Medicare price negotiations in the future. A fact sheet including the full timeline for the implementation of the negotiated prices and information regarding other health-related provisions of the IRA is available here.

###