Latest / The Fiscal Policy Podcast with Fexingo: Government Budgets, Stimulus, and Public Spending
Why Governments Pay Two Different Prices for the Same Drug
Episode 28 of The Fiscal Policy Podcast uncovers a strange asymmetry in US government spending: the Department of Veterans Affairs pays dramatically less for prescription drugs than Medicare Part D does — sometimes two to three times less for the exact same medication. Hosts Lucas and Luna trace the root cause to a 1992 law that explicitly banned Medicare from negotiating prices, a restriction that doesn't apply to the VA. They walk through the 2022 Inflation Reduction Act's attempt to close the gap, the legal challenges from pharmaceutical companies, and why the Congressional…
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