Title: Capping Prescription Costs Act of 2018
Policy area: Health

Summary:
Capping Prescription Costs Act of 2018
This bill caps the monthly prescription-drug cost-sharing permitted under qualified health plans and group health plans.


[Congressional Bills 115th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[S. 3194 Introduced in Senate (IS)]

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115th CONGRESS
  2d Session
                                S. 3194

    To amend the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act to cap 
        prescription drug cost-sharing, and for other purposes.


_______________________________________________________________________


                   IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES

                             July 11, 2018

   Ms. Warren (for herself, Mr. Nelson, Mr. Wyden, Mrs. Murray, Mr. 
Whitehouse, Ms. Smith, Mr. Leahy, Ms. Hassan, Ms. Baldwin, Mr. Durbin, 
Mrs. Shaheen, Mr. Blumenthal, Mr. Heinrich, Mr. Udall, Mrs. Gillibrand, 
  Mr. Reed, and Mr. Merkley) introduced the following bill; which was 
 read twice and referred to the Committee on Health, Education, Labor, 
                              and Pensions

_______________________________________________________________________

                                 A BILL


 
    To amend the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act to cap 
        prescription drug cost-sharing, and for other purposes.

    Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the 
United States of America in Congress assembled,

SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.

    This Act may be cited as the ``Capping Prescription Costs Act of 
2018''.

SEC. 2. CAP ON PRESCRIPTION DRUG COST-SHARING.

    (a) Qualified Health Plans.--Section 1302(c) of the Patient 
Protection and Affordable Care Act (42 U.S.C. 18022(c)) is amended--
            (1) in paragraph (3)(A)(i), by inserting ``, including 
        cost-sharing with respect to prescription drugs covered by the 
        plan'' after ``charges''; and
            (2) by adding at the end the following:
            ``(5) Prescription drug cost-sharing.--
                    ``(A) 2020.--For plan years beginning in 2020, the 
                cost-sharing incurred under a health plan with respect 
                to prescription drugs covered by the plan shall not 
                exceed $250 per month for each enrolled individual, or 
                $500 for each family.
                    ``(B) 2021 and later.--
                            ``(i) In general.--In the case of any plan 
                        year beginning in a calendar year after 2020, 
                        the limitation under this paragraph shall be 
                        equal to the applicable dollar amount under 
                        subparagraph (A) for plan years beginning in 
                        2020, increased by an amount equal to the 
                        product of that amount and the medical care 
                        component of the consumer price index for all 
                        urban consumers (as published by the Bureau of 
                        Labor Statistics) for that year.
                            ``(ii) Adjustment to amount.--If the amount 
                        of any increase under clause (i) is not a 
                        multiple of $5, such increase shall be rounded 
                        to the next lowest multiple of $5.''.
    (b) Group Health Plans.--Section 2707(b) of the Public Health 
Service Act (42 U.S.C. 300gg-6(b)) is amended--
            (1) by striking ``annual''; and
            (2) by striking ``paragraph (1) of section 1302(c)'' and 
        inserting ``paragraphs (1) and (5) of section 1302(c) of the 
        Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act''.
    (c) Effective Date.--The amendments made by subsections (a) and (b) 
shall take effect with respect to plans beginning after December 31, 
2019.
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