Drug Ad Transparency Bill Mandates Price Disclosure for Meds Over $35 by July 2026

The Drug-price Transparency for Consumers Act of 2025 (DTC Act) is basically Congress telling pharmaceutical companies, “If you’re going to advertise your expensive meds directly to consumers, you have to show the price tag.” This bill targets the direct-to-consumer (DTC) advertising that only the U.S. and New Zealand allow, aiming to give consumers a critical piece of information before they ask their doctor for that new drug they saw on TV.

The Price Tag Rule: What You Need to Know

The core of the bill, set to take effect by July 1, 2026, requires that any DTC ad for a prescription drug or biologic covered by Medicare or Medicaid must clearly and conspicuously state the Wholesale Acquisition Cost (WAC) for a 30-day supply. The WAC is the manufacturer’s list price—the starting point for the drug’s cost. This rule only kicks in if the 30-day supply WAC is $35 or more. If the drug costs less than that list price, the manufacturer doesn't have to include the disclosure.

This is a big deal because, as the findings section notes, the average American sees about nine drug ads daily, and those ads push expensive, newly approved drugs. For someone with a high-deductible health plan, the WAC is often what they pay out-of-pocket until they hit that deductible. Right now, you might not know the cost until you’re standing at the pharmacy counter, which is too late if the price is unaffordable. This bill forces that price disclosure upfront, allowing you to ask your doctor about cheaper alternatives before the prescription is written.

Who Pays the Price for Transparency?

This new rule puts the pharmaceutical industry squarely in the crosshairs. If manufacturers or their advertisers fail to include this clear pricing information, they face a civil penalty of up to $100,000 for every single violation. That’s a serious compliance risk, forcing every drug commercial, website banner, and magazine ad to be meticulously reviewed for accuracy and compliance with the new disclosure rules. The bill gives the Secretary one year to define exactly what “clearly and conspicuously” means for different ad formats, like TV and online, which leaves a lot of room for regulatory interpretation.

The Real-World Impact: What Changes at the Doctor’s Office

Imagine you see an ad for a new arthritis medication. Under the current system, the ad talks about relief and includes a rapid-fire list of side effects. Under the DTC Act, if that drug’s WAC is, say, $6,000 for a month, the ad must state that price clearly. For a busy person—like a construction foreman or a software developer—who has a $4,000 deductible, seeing that $6,000 price tag upfront is a wake-up call. It empowers them to ask their doctor, “Is there an older, generic, or cheaper alternative that works just as well?”

This transparency aims to curb the trend where advertised drugs, which are often the most expensive and newest, get prescribed nine times more often than similar non-advertised drugs. Since Medicare and Medicaid are footing the bill for a huge chunk of these advertised medications—to the tune of $34 billion in 2018 for the top 20 TV drugs alone—the hope is that informed consumer choices will reduce overall wasteful spending in government healthcare programs. The biggest challenge, however, will be ensuring that the final rules make the price truly unavoidable and that manufacturers don't try to make the price disclosure as subtle as the current list of side effects.