Bills · S 1836
IN COMMITTEE· 119TH CONGRESS
Senate BillS 1836Health
SMART Prices Act
INTRO MAY 21· LAST ACTION MAY 21
READING
2MIN
COSPONSORS
26
READER REACTIONS0 TOTAL
NO VOTES YET · BE THE FIRST
- Introduced only
LEGISLATIVE PROGRESS
STEP 2 / 8Introduced
In Committee
Reported
Passed Senate
Passed House
Conference
To President
Became Law
WHAT THE BILL DOES
AI-writtenThis bill matters because it could dramatically change how much Americans pay for many prescription drugs covered by Medicare. If it becomes law, a larger number of drugs would be subject to price negotiation sooner, potentially leading to lower costs for seniors and people with disabilities. This directly addresses concerns about the high cost of medications, which can be a major financial burden for many families.
Conversely, drug manufacturers may argue that earlier and more aggressive price negotiation could reduce their profits and therefore their incentive or ability to invest in developing new, innovative treatments. Voters should care because it impacts both their healthcare costs and the future landscape of pharmaceutical research and drug availability. If it doesn't become law, the existing Inflation Reduction Act provisions for drug price negotiation would remain, leading to a slower rollout of negotiated prices and fewer drugs being affected.
KEY PROVISIONS
3AI-extractedPROVISION 01
Increases the number of drugs selected for Medicare price negotiation from 15 to 50 annually, starting in 2028 and for every subsequent year.
This means many more prescription drugs will be subject to government price negotiation, potentially leading to lower costs for a larger number of medications much faster than currently planned.
PROVISION 02
Shortens the period before drugs become eligible for Medicare price negotiation from 7 years (for small molecule drugs) and 11 years (for biologics) to 3 years for both.
Drugs will become eligible for price negotiation much sooner after they are first introduced to the market, allowing Medicare to pursue lower prices earlier in a drug's lifecycle.
PROVISION 03
Adjusts the maximum price Medicare can negotiate for drugs: slightly increases the ceiling for newer eligible drugs (from 75% to 76% of current price), but significantly lowers the ceiling for older eligible drugs (from 65% to 55%, and from 40% to 30%).
This changes the potential savings for different categories of drugs, allowing slightly less aggressive negotiation for the newest drugs but much more aggressive negotiation for older, long-standing medications.
SPONSORSHIP
1 + 26
D· Minnesota
YRS IN OFFICE
19
BILLS LED
95
COSPONSOR BREAKDOWNBIPARTISAN · 0%
DEM 25 REP 0 IND 1
ACTION TIMELINE
2 EVENTSMAY 21
Introduced in Senate
MAY 21
Read twice and referred to the Committee on Finance.
BILL INFO
TypeSenate Bill
NumberS 1836
Congress119th
StatusIn Committee
IntroducedMay 21, 2025
Last actionMay 21, 2025
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IN COMMITTEE· 119TH CONGRESS · FINANCE COMMITTEE · INTRODUCED MAY 21, 2025
Senate BillS 1836Health
SMART Prices Act
INTRODUCED MAY 21, 2025· LAST ACTION MAY 21, 2025
PASSAGE CHANCES
—%
READING
2 min
COSPONSORS
26
COMPLEXITY
Moderate
