drug prices
PBMs are modern-day drug price gangsters and must be held accountable
In March, Ohio Attorney General Dave Yost filed a groundbreaking lawsuit challenging the coercive tactics of the shadowy, modern-day health care mafia known as pharmacy benefit managers (PBMs). You may not have heard of PBMs before, but they play a critical role in controlling which medications your insurer covers. While that may sound like a […]
Here’s when drug prices will start to decrease for Medicare recipients
Starting next month, a $35 cap on insulin prices will go into effect for millions of Medicare recipients. The lower pricing is one of the first of several policy measures Americans will see in the coming months and years under the Inflation Reduction Act signed into law in August. The bill also requires pharmaceutical companies […]
U.S. Senate passes major health, tax and climate bill in boost for Democrats
WASHINGTON — The U.S. Senate, along party lines, passed a sweeping energy, health care, climate and tax package Sunday afternoon, following an overnight marathon of votes that resulted in just a handful of notable changes to the legislation. The 755-page bill was passed after Vice President Kamala Harris broke a 50-50 tie in the evenly divided Senate. […]
Feds to probe drug rebates
The Federal Trade Commission last week announced what some observers believe could be a game-changer when it comes to the rising cost of prescription drugs. The agency — which is meant to protect fair competition — said it would look into the murky practice by which drugmakers grant rebates and other fees to insurer-owned pharmacy […]
Dangerous care delays ahead if more insurers implement “white bagging” policies
Consider the following scenario: A cancer patient comes into a community oncology clinic for their regularly scheduled chemotherapy treatment. After concluding the pre-treatment evaluation, the oncologist determines that the patient’s dose should be adjusted. Perhaps they need a higher dose than what we previously administered — a fairly common occurrence in the world of cancer […]
Despite restraints, Democrats’ drug pricing plan could still aid consumers
By Michael McAuliff, Kaiser Health News The Medicare prescription drug pricing plan Democrats unveiled this week is not nearly as ambitious as many lawmakers sought, but they and drug policy experts say the provisions crack open the door to reforms that could have dramatic effects. Tamping down drug expenses has been a longtime rallying cry for consumers beset […]
Biden administration announces “comprehensive” plan to fix high drug prices
The U.S. Department of Health and Human Services last week issued its plan to address high drug prices as part of President Joe Biden’s push to take on anticompetitive practices across the economy. But while it addressed in detail abusive practices by drugmakers, it was a lot more superficial about the practices of much-larger corporations […]
2+2=? Senate uses murky math as it shelves drug pricing rule to fund infrastructure
By Michael McAuliff, Kaiser Health News The Senate’s release of its bipartisan infrastructure plan signals that lawmakers are poised to throw former President Donald Trump’s belated bid to lower Medicare drug prices under the bus — not to mention trains, bridges, tunnels and broadband connections. That’s because the massive spending bill is the first of […]
Eleven generic versions of an HIV drug rush onto the market… and list prices go up
The health care system is supposed to incentivize the development of wonder drugs and then apply market forces to squeeze prices to a minimum. But a new report shows how at least for one drug, incentivizing is working a lot better than price-squeezing. At least when insurance is involved. For example, Blueberry Pharmacy in the […]
To fix drug costs, stop Big Pharma price-gouging and tax-dodging
By Hannah Hendrix, American Medical Student Association I’m studying at The Ohio State University to become a doctor because I want to help people. Unfortunately, far too many Americans today are confronting skyrocketing prescription drug costs that prevent them from following their doctor’s advice because they can’t afford treatments they need. Drug prices are rising […]