Written by : STEPHANIE C . OCANO

MOST RECENTLY , RESEARCHERS were able to find a cure for the liver disease hepatitis C . How much did it cost ? Roughly $ 4.5 billion according to the Medicare Payment Advisory Commission . This was more than 15 times what Medicare spent the year before on older treatments for the disease .

The extraordinary outlays for these breakthrough drugs , which can cost $ 1,000 a day or more , will be borne largely by federal taxpayers , who pay for most of Medicare ’ s prescription drug program . But the expenditures will also mean higher deductibles and maximum out-of-pocket costs for many of the program ’ s 39 million

6 May 2015