The Federal Trade Commission on July 9 issued its interim report on prescription drug middlemen known as pharmacy benefit managers or PBMs.
Mark Blum, managing director of the PBM Accountability Project, issued the following statement:
“We are pleased to see movement on the FTC’s investigation with the recent release of this interim report. It’s no surprise the agency found that PBMs are profiting at the expense of patients and independent pharmacies because of the industry’s ‘vertically integrated and concentrated market structure.’ This observation is accurate, and we previously submitted a letter to highlight our concerns.
“Since then, there have been countless examples, media coverage, Congressional hearings and more on the vertical integration of the health insurance industry, which includes PBMs, physicians, medical insurance, pharmacy distribution and offshore group purchasing operations. This integration undermines market competition and ultimately drives up costs. As we have previously stated, this issue cannot be solved unless the perverse incentives PBMs have to increase prescription drug costs are directly addressed.
“We commend the FTC for its ongoing inquiry into the PBM corporate middlemen and look forward to its final report.”
To learn more about the PBM issue and legislative solutions, click here.
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