Pete Ricketts on Medicare: Drug Prices, Orphan Drugs, and Prior Authorization
Pete Ricketts voted on July 1, 2025 against an amendment to cut Medicare drug prices and add dental, vision and hearing coverage, then voted for the One Big Beautiful Bill Act, which exempts more orphan drugs from Medicare price negotiation (roll call; roll call). KFF says the change is likely to raise out-of-pocket costs for beneficiaries who take those drugs, such as the cancer drug Keytruda, whose selection for negotiation it delays by a year (KFF).
The Nebraska senator also voted in 2025 against budget amendments meant to block Medicare benefit cuts and higher Medicare drug costs, and in July 2026 against taking up a resolution to overturn a new Medicare prior authorization program that uses artificial intelligence (roll call; roll call; roll call). He voted to confirm Mehmet Oz to run the agency behind that program (roll call).
For people with Medicare in Nebraska, these votes mean slower or smaller savings on high-cost drugs and no new dental, vision or hearing benefit.
Pete Ricketts's Votes on Medicare Drug Prices and Coverage
- Ricketts Voted Against Cutting Medicare Drug Prices and Adding Dental, Vision and Hearing in July 2025. On July 1, 2025, Pete Ricketts voted no on the Sanders amendment to cut Medicare drug prices in half and expand coverage to dental, vision and hearing, which failed 47 to 53 (roll call; Senate Daily Press).
- Ricketts Voted for the Law That Exempts More Orphan Drugs From Negotiation in July 2025. On July 1, 2025, Ricketts voted for the One Big Beautiful Bill Act (roll call). It exempts drugs approved for two or more rare diseases from negotiation and delays negotiation for others, which KFF projects will diminish Medicare's savings and raise beneficiaries' costs (KFF).
- Ricketts Voted Against Shielding Medicare From Drug Cost Increases in April 2025. On April 5, 2025, Ricketts voted no on an amendment to the budget resolution that set up the megabill, which would have created a point of order against legislation increasing drug costs for seniors and people with disabilities on Medicare; it failed 49 to 50 (roll call).
- Ricketts Voted Against Protecting Medicare and Medicaid Benefits in February 2025. On February 21, 2025, Ricketts voted no on a motion to create a point of order against legislation that would reduce Medicare and Medicaid benefits, which failed 49 to 51 (roll call).
- Ricketts Voted Against Overturning AI Prior Authorization in Medicare in July 2026. On July 16, 2026, Ricketts voted no on taking up a resolution to overturn the CMS rule for the WISeR model, which failed 46 to 50 (roll call). CMS describes WISeR as using artificial intelligence and machine learning, along with human review, to decide Medicare payment for select services in six states from 2026 to 2031 (CMS).
- Ricketts Voted to Confirm Mehmet Oz to Run Medicare in April 2025. On April 3, 2025, Ricketts voted to confirm Mehmet Oz as administrator of the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services, 53 to 45 (roll call). CMS under Oz runs the WISeR prior authorization model (CMS).
What Pete Ricketts's Medicare Votes Mean for Nebraska Seniors
- Nebraska seniors on costly orphan drugs lose negotiated prices. KFF reports that in 2023 the 70,000 Medicare beneficiaries who used Keytruda faced average annual out-of-pocket liability of about $15,000; delaying or exempting negotiation for drugs like it means people in Nebraska and other states keep paying higher prices longer (KFF).
- Medicare still does not cover dental, vision or hearing care. The amendment Ricketts voted against would have expanded Medicare to cover dental, vision and hearing care, so that coverage was not added for the Nebraskans who rely on Medicare (roll call; Senate Daily Press).
Frequently Asked Questions Pete Ricketts on Medicare
What is Pete Ricketts's record on Medicare under Trump?
Pete Ricketts voted against a July 1, 2025 amendment to cut Medicare drug prices and add dental, vision and hearing coverage, and for a law that exempts more orphan drugs from Medicare price negotiation (roll call; KFF). He voted against budget amendments to block Medicare benefit cuts and drug cost increases, and against taking up a resolution to overturn Medicare's AI prior authorization program (roll call; roll call). He voted to confirm Mehmet Oz to run CMS (roll call).
Did Pete Ricketts vote to add dental, vision and hearing to Medicare?
No. Pete Ricketts voted against the Sanders amendment to add dental, vision and hearing coverage to Medicare and cut drug prices on July 1, 2025; it failed 47 to 53 (roll call; Senate Daily Press).
What has Pete Ricketts done on Medicare prior authorization?
Pete Ricketts voted on July 16, 2026 against taking up a resolution to overturn the CMS rule creating the WISeR model, which uses artificial intelligence in Medicare prior authorization decisions; the motion failed 46 to 50 (roll call; CMS).
Last updated: 2026-10-28