Medicare Seeks Public Input on Covering PrEP to Prevent HIV

[Jim Allen]

https://www.poz.com/article/medicare-seeks-public-input-covering-prep-prevent-hiv

Daily pills and long-acting PrEP both scored a grade A for preventing HIV. Now Medicare is considering national coverage.

The Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) is considering national Medicare coverage of pre-exposure prophylaxis (PrEP) to prevent HIV, notably the long-acting injectable Apretude, which is administered to people at risk for HIV every two months. As part of the analysis, CMS is seeking input from the public, particularly comments that include scientific evidence.

Comments can be submitted online on CMS.gov until February 11.

https://www.cms.gov/medicare-coverage-database/view/ncacal-tracking-sheet.aspx?ncaId=310&doctype=all&timeframe=30&sortBy=updated&bc=20

[zach]

Gilead must giddy at the prospect of dragging out profits on Truvada long past it's shelf life.

Can medicare negotiate drug prices yet?

[Jim Allen]

Well, could advocate that medicare considers using generic equivalents that are now on the market.

https://www.poz.com/article/cheaper-generic-prep-now-available

[mecch]

I take the 2 month injectable. It's very expensive. And one needs to be faithful about the dates of the injections. I'm not sure its appropriate for many people, but some, sure.

It's 2023 and sheesh - the price of all these drugs should be much cheaper. It doesn't sound like anyone is making the next push to make it happen.

War Criminal George Bush nevertheless could be thanked for teaming with anti-christ Jesse Helms to create a sea change for meds to the developing world and price cuts and generics. That was 2 decades ago. Where is the next hero? Rich countries are still paying top dollar.