The Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) has recently released new guidance for its next round of drug price negotiations, while the ongoing negotiations are still in progress. To shed light on this development, Yahoo Finance Health Reporter Anjalee Khemlani is joined by Dr. Meena Seshamani, CMS Deputy Administrator and Director of the Center for Medicare.

Seshamani highlights several changes introduced in the new guidance. First, the introduction of the Medicare Transaction Facilitator. "We received quite a bit of feedback," Seshamani explains, "from people interested in having the negotiated prices made available at pharmacies to those enrolled in the Medicare program." The Medicare Transaction Facilitator will "enable the exchange of data needed between all relevant parties in the supply chain involved in providing drugs at the point of sale."

Secondly, the guidance addresses "how we are getting feedback during the negotiation process." While CMS previously held 10 patient-focused listening sessions, the new guidance seeks further input on whether patients found those sessions beneficial.

"Our priority has been to implement the law in the most thoughtful way possible," Seshamani tells Yahoo Finance. "And that is the theme we continue to use. We are implementing as thoughtfully as we can and negotiating on behalf of the millions of people who rely on these medications for their health and well-being, as well as on behalf of the Medicare program."

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This post was written by Angel Smith