Taxpayer Watchdog Calls for Congressional Reform of Pharmacy Benefit Managers

For Immediate Release

Contact: Kara Zupkus, (224) 456-0257

WASHINGTON, D.C. – This morning, the House Oversight Committee is holding a hearing on the economic impacts of pharmacy benefit managers (PBMs). PBMs operations in publicly administered programs come at a tremendous cost to patients and taxpayers. For example, PBMs today have the power to mark-up generic drugs by up to 20 percent or exclude generic alternatives altogether in favor of brand-name drugs that yield higher rebates. This behavior hinders patients’ ability to maintain medical adherence, ultimately harming long-term health outcomes.

David Williams, president of the Taxpayers Protection Alliance, offered the following comment:

“Earnest efforts to rein in PBMs’ power and control in publicly administered plans would not only help patients, but also save taxpayer money. The evidence is abundant. For example, between 2017 and 2018, PBMs in Ohio lined their pockets with $225 million through spread pricing a practice where PBMs charge payers like Medicaid more than they pay the pharmacy to fill a prescription.

“Congress also needs to concentrate on PBMs’ role in diminishing transparency in healthcare. These middlemen operate without accountability, forcing American patients and families to bear the cost of their growth. Delaying reforming PBMs’ ability to distort publicly administered healthcare plans only extends the suffering of individuals who deserve timely and affordable healthcare and costs, and further wastes taxpayer dollars. This hearing is an important step in reforming PBMs to help consumers and taxpayers.”

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Taxpayers Protection Alliance (TPA) is a non-profit, non-partisan organization dedicated to educating the public through the research, analysis and dissemination of information on the government’s effects on the economy.