White House Is Trying To Mitigate Increase In Medicare Drug Premiums

Politico: Biden Admin To Spend Billions To Blunt Spike In Medicare Drug Premiums 
One of President Joe Biden’s signature domestic achievements is set to cause a significant spike in Medicare premiums for millions of Americans just ahead of the November election. Now, his administration is preparing to dole out billions of dollars to private insurance companies to blunt the impact of the increase. The jump in premiums is a consequence of efforts to reduce what older Americans pay for prescription drugs, part of the 2022 Inflation Reduction Act. Insurance companies are on the hook for what patients used to pay and are raising drug plan premiums to make up the difference. (King and Lim, 8/13)

Axios: What To Watch When Medicare Releases First Negotiated Drug Prices
The confidential nature of the Biden administration's drug price negotiations has made the process and outcome of the long-sought Democratic policy goal something of a mystery. The administration is expected to announce the results of those negotiations this week, and there's plenty of speculation about the actual savings that will be realized starting in 2026 — and how aggressive the Biden administration got on pharma in an election year. (Goldman, 8/14)

Modern Healthcare: Mark Cuban Says He's 'F****** Up' Healthcare On 'The Daily Show' 
Mark Cuban plans to increase healthcare price transparency by making all future Mark Cuban Cost Plus Drug Co. partnership contracts public. During a conversation with Jon Stewart on "The Daily Show" Monday night, Cuban pivoted the conversation from the Dallas Mavericks to discuss his main priority: shaking up healthcare. (DeSilva, 8/13)

CIDRAP: Gut Microbiome Of Nursing Home Residents A 'Major Reservoir' Of Antibiotic Resistance Genes 
A study in Australia suggests the gut microbiomes of nursing home residents harbor hundreds of antibiotic resistance genes (ARGs), researchers reported yesterday in the Journal of Infection. (Dall, 8/13)