NCPA Supports H.R. 4577 to Benefit Seniors; Rejects Misleading PBM Attacks
NCPA Supports H.R. 4577 to Benefit Seniors; Rejects Misleading PBM Attacks
Alexandria, Va. July 22, 2014 – National Community Pharmacists Association (NCPA) CEO B. Douglas Hoey, RPh, MBA issued the following statement disputing a cost estimate released today by representatives of the pharmacy benefit manager (PBM) industry regarding H.R. 4577, The Ensuring Seniors Access to Local Pharmacies Act:
“This study reflects that PBMs are getting desperate to continue denying convenient access to medication and pharmacy choice for Medicare seniors in medically underserved areas.
“The Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) has heard all of the PBMs’ arguments previously yet continues to reject them and instead expresses continued, strong support for the kind of patient choice protections that are embodied in H.R. 4577. CMS has disputed PBM cost-saving claims of ‘preferred’ network plans as currently structured. CMS has testified to Congress that, ‘some plans with preferred pharmacy networks do not appear to result in savings—instead of passing along savings achieved through economies of scale, these Part D plans instead charge the Part D program higher prices, increasing taxpayer costs.’ In that same testimony, CMS added that ‘expanding access to lower priced drugs’—as H.R. 4577 would do—’also has the potential to reduce government expenditures on Part D.’
Read full article here: http://www.ncpanet.org/newsroom/news-releases/2014/07/22/ncpa-supports-h.r.-4577-to-benefit-seniors-rejects-misleading-pbm-attacks
