News Wire

PUTT President Jason Wallace explains on BenefitsPro.com why mail order prescriptions cause problems for consumers and taxpayers following the release of a new report, The Expensive Truth Behind Taxpayer-Funded Mail Order Pharmaceuticals, by the Taxpayers Protection Alliance.

Increasingly, both private and public sector groups are beginning to take a careful look at the practices of pharmacy benefits managers as employers and taxpayers become curious about massive PBM profits and unclear contracts.  Read more…

A recent study from the IMS Institute for Healthcare Informatics suggests the recent shift in some Medicaid plans from a fee-for-service model to a managed-care system has not delivered on highly-touted savings on prescription drugs.  Read More…

A great article from CFO’s Barry Eyre offers some helpful tips for plan sponsors to hold down drug costs.

According to the article: “As anyone who has analyzed a pharmacy benefit manager (PBM) contract will attest, these contracts are both complex and opaque. To maximize cost savings and risk management opportunities available through “carving out,” it is essential to understand and clarify all aspects of the contract while also embedding comprehensive audit rights and the ability to implement appropriate clinical programs.”  Read more…

PUTT President Dave Marley explains on BenefitsPro.com why HR Managers and prescription drug consumers should take a look at a new campaign run by the National Community Pharmacists Association (NCPA): WhoRunsMyDrugPlan.com.

PBMs claim to lower the costs of prescription medications for the rest of us, but in fact they often mark-up the price of medications and keep the profits.  Read more…

Pharmacists United for Truth and Transparency Marks One Year Anniversary of Fighting Abuses by Pharmacy Benefits Managers

Coalition of Independent Pharmacists Focuses on Reducing Prescription Drug Costs

WASHINGTON, DC – Pharmacists United for Truth and Transparency (PUTT) today commemorated its first anniversary of working to expose abusive practices of pharmacy benefits managers (PBMs) and reduce the cost of prescription medications.  Since forming in August 2011, PUTT has worked to explain to employers in the private and public sectors and members of the media how PBMs, who administer prescription drug programs, increase the cost of medications while lining their own pockets with the profits.

“PUTT pharmacists have worked tirelessly this year to expose the profiteering role of PBMs and bring accountability to the shadowy world of pharmacy benefits management,” said PUTT President Dave Marley. “We have a long way to go to eliminate PBM abuse of employers and taxpayers’ dollars, but we’re committed to the fight and excited for new breakthroughs this year.”

Over the past year, PUTT’s network of more than 1,000 independent pharmacists across the United States has led a charge to bring accountability to the pharmacy benefits management industry.

“An important way to keep drug prices down is transparency.  PBMs make excessive profits by charging plan sponsors far more than they pay pharmacists.  The practice is called ‘spread pricing.’ PBMs get away with this mark-up because their contracts prohibit pharmacists’ from telling plan sponsors how much the PBM has paid them.”

Amidst a merger in April between two of the nation’s largest pharmacy benefits managers, Express Scripts and Medco, and growing PBM involvement in Medicaid programs through “managed care” takeovers, PUTT has advocated for increased PBM transparency and worked with benefits managers to construct and implement contracts which prohibit PBMs from price-gouging and marking-up drug costs.

ABOUT PHARMACISTS UNITED FOR TRUTH AND TRANSPARENCY

Pharmacists United for Truth and Transparency (PUTT) is an independent watchdog organization dedicated to exposing the role pharmacy benefit managers (PBMs) play in driving up prescription drug costs for consumers and employers. PUTT is a growing coalition of independent pharmacists and pharmacy owners and a resource for employers, policy makers and members of the media. It is a not-for-profit organization funded by individual members, not corporations or other special interest groups. For more information visit TruthRx.org.

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