S. 832 · Where this bill is now
In committee
Introduced in the Senate, Mar 4, 2025
What this bill does
In plain words · AI-written from the official summaryDelays when drugs qualify for Medicare price negotiation
The federal government is allowed to negotiate prices on certain prescription drugs sold through Medicare starting in 2026. Right now, regular drugs need to be on the market for at least 7 years to qualify for negotiation, while certain biologic drugs need 11 years. This bill changes that by requiring regular drugs to also have 11 years of market approval before they can be negotiated, starting in 2028.
How it affects you
If you take prescription drugs covered by Medicare, this change means it will take longer before the government can negotiate lower prices on newer drugs you might use. Drug makers would have more years before facing price negotiation, though the impact on your actual costs depends on which medications you take and when they become eligible for negotiation.
Read the official summary (Introduced in Senate, Mar 4, 2025)
Ensuring Pathways to Innovative Cures Act of 2025 or the EPIC Act of 2025
This bill lengthens the amount of time for which drug products must have market approval in order for the products to qualify for negotiation under the Medicare Drug Price Negotiation Program.
The Medicare Drug Price Negotiation Program requires the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services to negotiate the prices of certain prescription drugs under Medicare beginning in 2026. Among other requirements, drugs must have had market approval for at least 7 years (for drug products) or 11 years (for biologics) to qualify for negotiation.
The bill modifies these provisions so as to require drug products to also have had at least 11 years of market approval in order to qualify for negotiation beginning in 2028.
Written by AI (Claude) using only the official summary by the Congressional Research Service, the Library of Congress’s nonpartisan research staff. It can miss nuance, so check the official summary and the bill text for details.
1st SessionS. 832
A BILL
EPIC Act of 2025
Sponsor: Sen. Thomas Tillis (R-NC) · Introduced Mar 4, 2025 · Health · 1 version of the text
Sources: Congress.gov actions and votes · bill text from GovInfo · latest official action Mar 4, 2025: “Read twice and referred to the Committee on Finance.”