Prescription Drugs - Medicine & Money
The truth about prescription drug costs.
[click here]What You Can Do -- Who to Contact
If the mysteries of pharmacy benefit managers (PBMs) seem overwhelming, there are solutions. They all involve exercising your rights as a citizen and communicating with your elected officials. The most reliable communication methods are email and phone calls to local offices. Find the contact information for those elected officals by clicking here and fill in your address information to be directed to appropriate contact information.
Best price for Medicare
Tell your U.S. senators and representatives that you want your federal government to negotiate for best prices in the Medicare Part D program just as they do in the Veterans Administration program.
Unknown costs
If you want to truly compare costs, tell your state legislator that you want transparency in PBM contracts. Transparency, in this instance, means full disclosure by a PBM of the amount of “rebate” or “kickback” the PBM negotiates with the drug manufacturer. When you can compare this information from one plan to another, you can make an informed decision, whether you are the vice president for human resources of a Fortune 100 company or an individual selecting a Medicare Part D plan.
Reliable access to medications
Tell your federal and state elected officials to enact and enforce penalties against PBMs that switch formularies in the middle of a plan year. A formulary is a list of drugs covered by that plan’s PBM.
Equal access to medications
Not all medications are suitable for mail delivery. Think of a metal mailbox in Texas in July or North Dakota in January. Also, if you want to be able to choose your pharmacy, tell your federal and state elected officials to ensure equal reimbursement to local community pharmacies as to mail order pharmacies owned by PBMs.