Evaluation of Competitive Acquistion Program for Part B Drugs

The purpose of this task order is to provide evaluative information about a new component of the Medicare program. Section 303(d) of the 2003 Medicare Prescription Drug, Improvement, and Modernization Act (Public Law 108-173) establishes a competitive acquisition program (CAP) for Medicare Part B-covered drugs and biologicals. The CAP is intended to be an alternative to the Medicare Average Sales Price methodology adopted under Section 303(c), which was instituted in January 2005. Under CAP, a physician does not buy drugs and biologicals for reimbursement at the Average Sales Price (ASP) payment allowance limit, but instead receives them from a vendor who has won a drug supplier contract through a competitive bidding process. This evaluation examines the range of drugs available to physicians under the CAP, program participation, the effects on Medicare payments, and beneficiary cost-sharing.