Waxman to seek Medicaid prices for dual eligbles
Executive Summary
Legislation that would set Medicare Part D drug prices paid specifically for dual eligible beneficiaries at rates that were paid under Medicaid prior to being shifted to the federal prescription drug program is under development by House Oversight and Government Reform Committee Chairman Henry Waxman, D-Calif. The pending bill is an outgrowth of a report the committee released in July that said the government is paying 30 percent more for dual eligibles' drugs since drug coverage for the dual eligibles shifted from Medicaid to Medicare Part D under the Medicare Modernization Act (1"The Pink Sheet," July 28, 2008, p. 24). Brian Cohen, senior investigative counsel for the committee, said Sept. 23 during the AHIP annual Medicare and Medicaid conference that a bill could be introduced soon, but at the very latest early into the next Congress