What We’re Reading: Menthol Cigarette Ban Lawsuit; ADHD Medication Shortage; Medicare Drug Price Negotiations Next Step

Lawsuit Seeks to Force Menthol Cigarette Ban After Months of Delays

Antismoking groups sued the US government on Tuesday over the long-awaited menthol cigarette ban, which the Biden administration has been delaying for months, according to the Associated Press. This lawsuit is the latest effort to force the government to ban menthol cigarettes, which are disproportionately used by young people and Black smokers; advocates are concerned that the federal plan could be derailed by election-year politics. Late last year, White House officials said they would take until March to review the rule. After the March deadline passed, 3 nonprofit groups, including Action on Smoking and Health, filed their lawsuit in a California federal court. A lawyer who helped file the lawsuit said the government will have about 2 months to respond.

More Americans Forgoing ADHD Medications as Shortages Drag On

A recent analysis found that the fill rate for Adderall and Vyvanse, 2 commonly prescribed drugs for attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD), dropped more than 10% in 2 years despite soaring demand, according to Axios. The ADHD drug shortage has occurred for nearly 18 months with no clear end in sight and is among many generic medicine shortages in recent years. Likely drivers of the shortages include drug production caps and pandemic-driven demand increases. The problem has recently been getting attention on Capitol Hill and from federal regulators. On Tuesday, HHS said in a white paper that statutory changes and more funding are needed for “more impactful and enduring solutions” than the ones it has already taken to address the shortages.

US Takes Next Step in Medicare Drug Price Negotiations

The Biden administration announced Tuesday that it has responded to offers from the manufacturers of 10 high-cost drugs selected for the Medicare drug pricing negotiations but provided no further details, according to Reuters. CMS picked the first 10 drugs for negotiation in August and sent its initial price offers in February. The companies had until March 1 to respond, and all did so. Each company can meet with CMS up to 3 times for further negotiations before a final price is announced on August 1. However, the negotiated prices will not come into effect until 2026. The drugs selected for negotiation are manufactured by Bristol Myers Squibb, Johnson & Johnson, Eli Lilly, Novo Nordisk, Pfizer, Merck & Co, AbbVie, Amgen, and Boehringer Ingelheim.