“Dozens of patient advocacy groups are angry over an unusual move by a pharmacy benefits manager that recently began offering $500 debit cards to people who agree to switch psoriasis medicines after it removed a widely used drug from several of its formularies.” Read the full story

“By not allowing coupons to be counted toward the deductible, patients may be put in the position to decide whether to pay hundreds of dollars out of pocket, or not obtain their lifesaving medicines,” Kahle, who chairs the Health Policy Committee, said. “No one should ever be forced to make that decision.” Read the fullRead more about Kahle testifies for bill to require health insurance to count medication coupons toward plan deductible[…]

“Advocates for consumers with chronic conditions say the rule will make it harder for patients with conditions such as cancer and multiple sclerosis who rely on very expensive drugs to afford them.” Read the full story

“When government-run health systems in other countries use QALY, the inevitable result is inequitable access to lifesaving drugs and treatments, the Goldwater report found.” Read the full story

“Imagine going with a friend to your favorite restaurant. When the bill comes, your friend generously offers to cover it—and plops down a gift card he received for Christmas. The waiter charges the card without issue. But as you get up to leave, the waiter demands more cash.” Read the full story

Health insurance is designed to cover patients when they get sick, but what happens when insurance companies stamp “reject” on a claim? Some of those patients may end up sicker, suggests a recent survey entitled “Not What the Doctor Ordered” from the Doctor-Patient Rights Project (DPRP). Health insurers denied coverage for nearly a quarter ofRead more about Health insurer denials may be making Americans sicker[…]

Pharmacy Benefit Managers (PBMs), the goliath health insurance middle-men wedged between plan managers, drug manufacturers, patients and pharmacies, make huge profits by forcing pharmacies to pay back a portion of drug sales after the sale has been completed. It is a profitable business model in today’s healthcare industry. The practice is called a “clawback,” andRead more about Pharmaceutical middle men reforms would save patients and taxpayers billions[…]

LANSING, MI (WNEM) – Michigan pharmacists are trying to lower the cost of your prescriptions and are asking you to stand up with them against inflated and shadowy pricing practices. “Becomes rather frustrating for the community pharmacist,” said Larry Wagenknecht, CEO of the Michigan Pharmacists Association. Wagenknecht believes too many people are being forced toRead more about Pharmacists start campaign to lower prescription drug prices[…]

MILBRIDGE — With the recent news about increases in premiums for health plans sold through the Affordable Care Act marketplace, everyone wants to vilify the ACA. The ACA is but a symptom of the issue. Where are our policy dollars going? As a primary care physician, I am on the front lines. Milbridge is remote.Read more about Maine Voices: The problem isn’t Obamacare; it’s the insurance companies[…]

In the past few months, four bills have been introduced in Congress calling for transparency in prescription drug pricing. These bills—HR 1038, HR 1316, S.3308 and, earlier this week, one called C-THRU—largely concern pharmacy benefit managers (PBMs), a heretofore largely unrecognized component of the pharmaceutical industry. PBMs quietly became an integral part of the pharmaceuticalRead more about UNDERSTANDING THE HIDDEN VILLAIN OF BIG PHARMA: PHARMACY BENEFIT MANAGERS[…]