The Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services is the primary agency responsible for it, since the drug cards are being justified as a “demonstration project” under Medicare. The Treasury Department is involved in procuring the cards, according to officials familiar with the plan. The drug cards, which would be funded through a Medicare trust fund used to pay doctors, would help Medicare evaluate whether lowering drug co-payments could increase seniors’ use of needed drugs and lower their medical spending on doctor’s visits and hospitalizations. Researchers who study the Medicare drug benefit say the proposal has little value. Numerous studies have established that lowering the costs of certain drugs can improve patients’ use of medicines and reduce health spending.

Source: New York Times October 22, 2020 09:01 UTC