Patient Issues

The Independence Bucks County Author: Dr Marion Mass On January 10, 2024, 22-year-old Cole Schmidtknecht of Appleton, Wisconsin, went to his big-box pharmacy and was told that a preventative asthma inhaler he had relied on for years was no longer covered by his insurer. He would have to pay over $500 for it — out of pocket. Cole left without the inhaler. On January 21, 2024, he died as a consequence of a severe asthma attack. His father, Bil, who had the same insurance provi

Real Clear Health Reporter: Justin Leventhal In the past decade, independent drugstores have been vanishing, especially in low-income, minority, and rural communities, in part due to pharmacy benefit managers (PBMs) having rigged the system in favor of their own pharmacies. By steering patients to in-house pharmacies and squeezing independent pharmacies with hidden fees,  PBMs are driving local pharmacies out of business . This loss of competition hits vulnerable communities

You’ve probably heard of ghost kitchens, those restaurants that exist only on delivery apps with no physical storefront for customers to visit. But have you ever heard of ghost networks? They’re not spooky Halloween décor or the latest streaming conspiracy. Ghost networks are the phantom pharmacy networks that pharmacy benefit managers and insurance companies claim to exist on paper, but have little basis in reality. If you’ve ever tried to help a patient find an in-network p

Your Move America TRICARE. You already know what’s happening. You’ve seen the reimbursement rates. You’ve watched patients walk away empty-handed because their TRICARE plan won’t let you fill their prescriptions. You’ve eaten the cost on both brands and generics while wondering how this could be real. You’ve weathered being paid $0.84 in total to dispense. And you’ve kept showing up — because that’s what pharmacists do. But knowing isn’t enough anymore. TRICARE isn’t just bro

Oregon Bend Bulletin Author: Monique Whitney, PUTT Executive Director The 85 community and independent pharmacies in Oregon are on the...

NoLa.com Author: Monique Whitney, PUTT Executive Director Recently guest essayist Rob Maness suggested banning pharmacy benefit managers...

WebWire The American Medical Association (AMA) today published a  new annual analysis  (PDF) measuring competition in pharmacy benefit...

Ohio Capital Journal Reporter: Marty Schladen Owners of small pharmacies — many themselves members of local chambers of commerce — are...

The Federalist Author: Drew Johnson Why do we have a medical system in this country where too many people can’t get the treatment that...

PUTTbulletin May 2025 Something is seriously wrong with military prescription drug pricing, and it's time we talked about it. In the coming weeks PUTT will launch what we hope to be a provocative campaign focused on some troubling - but largely unacknowledged - questions: why are our military families and taxpayers paying dramatically inflated prices for generic prescription drugs through Tricare's PBM, Express Scripts? And what are we doing about it? It’s a Problem We Can’t

May 30, 2025 The Honorable Joseph Lombardo  Governor of Nevada  101 N. Carson Street  Carson City, NV 89701 Dear Governor Lombardo, I am reaching out to you today on behalf of Nevada’s independent pharmacies and their patients to respectfully urge you to veto Assembly Bill 259, which would implement prescription drug price controls similar to those established under the Medicare Drug Price Negotiation provisions of the Inflation Reduction Act . Community pharmacists are deepl

Duluth News Tribune OPINION: by PUTT President, Deborah Keaveny On March 21, pharmacist Philip Hommerding was busy dispensing medications...

Sen. Chuck Grassley, R-Iowa, suggested Congress could once again move to overhaul PBMs’ controversial business practices after it passes...

The program was supposed to save the government money. It doesn’t. The Washington Post Editorial Board Republicans in Congress have made...

The worst marriage in the history of healthcare is the unholy union of PBMs (pharmacy benefit managers) and formulary design. This carefree couple has fostered the creation of inconceivably high priced brand drugs in the U.S. market for decades, and we need an immediate annulment. Plan formularies are more influenced by quid pro quo payments between PBMs and drugmakers than clinical guidelines. Thanks to a safe harbor exemption from the Anti-Kickback Statute, PBMs can legall

Talking Points & Analysis of President Donald J. Trump Executive Order: LOWERING  DRUG PRICES BY ONCE AGAIN PUTTING AMERICANS FIRST ...

Whenever lawmakers begin discussing Pharmacy Benefit Manager (PBM) reform, a familiar pattern emerges: new advocacy groups, often with...

Newsweek Reporter: Suzanne Blake A Republican lawmaker has gone after UnitedHealthcare over its Medicare plan, calling the insurance...

The Natchez Democrat Reporter: Jan Griffey A Natchez pharmacist is applauding legislation being considered by the Mississippi House and...

Over 90% of independent pharmacy owners worry the program would severely hurt their finances, one survey reported. Healthcare Brew...