NACDS to Congress: Make PBM reform a priority in Change Healthcare cyberattack hearings
The National Association of Chain Drug Stores is urging lawmakers, the Department of Health and Human Services, the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services and other stakeholders to take action to help ensure affordable, high-quality and uninterrupted access to health care for Americans—including swift enactment of pharmacy benefit manager reforms in Medicaid and Medicare.
NACDS submitted the statement before Wednesday’s House Energy and Commerce Subcommittee on Oversight and Investigations and Senate Finance Committee hearings examining the impact of the Change Healthcare cyberattack.
Steve Anderson, president and CEO of NACDS, said: “Pharmacies and the patients they serve are in a crisis, as the harmful tactics of PBM middlemen continue to force pharmacies of all sizes to sell medications below cost, causing pharmacies to close their doors—and ultimately jeopardizing continuity of care. There will be important discussions today on the Change Healthcare cyberattack and on other key issues impacting healthcare access across communities. We urge Congress to include PBM reform as part of these hearings in both the U.S. House of Representatives and the U.S. Senate."
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Anderson continued, “Three companies control nearly 85% of the PBM market. A conversation about the damage inflicted on patients and pharmacies as a result of market consolidation is vital—and it is consistent with the conversation currently ongoing about ‘pharmaceutical benefit manipulation.’”