Official announcements from PBMs, news reports

FTC Report: PBMs Overcharge for Cancer Drugs, Impacting Patients and Independent Pharmacies, Including $CVS, $UNH, $CI

Jul 9, 2024, 01:47 PM

The Federal Trade Commission (FTC) has released an interim report highlighting the practices of Pharmacy Benefit Managers (PBMs). The report reveals that PBMs have been paying their own mail-order pharmacies up to 200 times more than rival pharmacies for commonly prescribed cancer drugs. This practice has been found to profit PBMs at the expense of patients and independent pharmacies. The FTC's investigation indicates that PBMs, which processed nearly 80% of the approximately 6.6 billion prescriptions dispensed by U.S. pharmacies in 2023, wield enormous power in the market. The report also notes that PBMs are inflating drug costs and putting financial pressure on independent pharmacies, thereby reducing access to quality, affordable healthcare. The FTC has faced challenges in obtaining information from PBMs, who dominate the prescription drug market and often refuse to comply with information requests. The report mentions companies like $CVS, $UNH, and $CI.