WASHINGTON — Following today’s U.S. Senate Committee on Finance hearing regarding the current state of health insurance, Patients Rising Executive Director Terry Wilcox released the following statement on real healthcare reforms to help patients:
“Health insurance should make it easier, not harder, to access and afford the critical care patients need. Unfortunately, today, for the 144 million Americans living with a chronic illness, insurance only presents another hurdle to a healthy, fulfilled life.
Any Washington policy solution aimed at reducing healthcare costs must include benefit design reform.
We believe in transparency in healthcare costs; patients have the right to know exactly who pockets their cash and for how much in each transaction. For example, a pharmacy receipt must clearly indicate the fees for everything and everyone, including the middlemen, like pharmacy benefit managers, and any rebates or savings and who pockets those savings.
Currently, prescription drug costs are murky, and insurers and pharmacy benefit managers grow fat on hidden profits disguised as “rebates” and “savings,” and patients are left with outrageous copays and other out-of-pocket costs for the medicines they depend on.”
