Aug 6, 2019 | Issues, State Issues
The Issue To reduce patients’ spending on prescription drugs, both Congress and a number of states are considering legislation that would allow Americans to purchase supposedly much cheaper medicines from Canada and elsewhere, which could put Americans’ health and...
Aug 6, 2019 | Issues, State Issues
Although it is now possible to detect diseases earlier and treat them more effectively, the reality is many Americans are not getting timely access to the new technologies and improved therapies responsible for these gains. One reason has to do with prior...
Aug 6, 2019 | Issues, State Issues
In 2018, many insurers and pharmacy benefit managers (PBMs) introduced copay accumulator programs to the American public, using such pleasant sounding names as “Out of Pocket Protection” and “Coupon Adjustment: Benefit Plan Protection” to lull consumers into believing...
Aug 6, 2019 | Issues, State Issues
Under a practice known as nonmedical switching, pharmacy benefit managers (PBMs) can force patients to change from a medication they rely on to a less costly and possibly less effective drug for financial reasons, not medical ones. PBMs accomplish this by dropping the...
Aug 6, 2019 | Issues, State Issues
Decisions about a course of therapy that were once exclusively made by the doctor and patient are now being overturned by a common insurance practice called step therapy, or what is sometimes called “fail first.” Requiring patients to try one or more less expensive...
Jun 11, 2019 | State Issues
Although it is now possible to detect diseases earlier and treat them more effectively, the reality is many Americans are not getting timely access to the new technologies and improved therapies responsible for these gains. One reason has to do with prior...
