Forty states and Puerto Rico have signed agreements to join a federal Medicaid model that ties what state programs pay for certain brand-name drugs to prices in other wealthy countries, the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services announced Sept. 18. All 50 states, the District of Columbia, and Puerto Rico have applied, and the remaining states have until Sept. 30 to sign.
The White House has described the move as bringing lower drug prices to all 50 state Medicaid programs. That is accurate for applications, but a signed agreement is what commits a state to participate, and the final count will not be clear until the deadline passes.
