"This federal legislation is going to make a huge difference to American health care, but it’s no silver bullet.
This is true, but unfortunately the impact won't be a good one.
13 Matching Annotations
- Sep 2022
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www.aarp.org www.aarp.org
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PBMs are intermediaries that are responsible for administering prescription drug benefits and managing prescription drug costs on behalf of health insurers. PBMs negotiate with drug companies and pharmacies to control drug spending, which can help lower premiums and reduce out-of-pocket costs.
PBMs are the middlemen of America's healthcare system, and are a major driver of increasing healthcare costs in the United States. So, why is AARP treating them with kid gloves? It may be because AARP's financial partner UnitedHealthcare owns one of the three largest PBMs in the United States: OptumRx. When UHC and OptumRx do well, so does AARP.
SOURCE: https://bit.ly/3Lfvq1B
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some of their practices have been criticized — mainly by pharmacies, pharmacists and drug companies — as having the opposite effect.
It's absurd for AARP to claim that PBMs are criticized "mainly by pharmacies, pharmacists, and drug companies" because criticisms of PBMs are far broader than that. Patient groups, small business organizations, and doctors all consistently express their disapproval of PBMs and their profiteering approach to healthcare. This statement merely illustrates how willing AARP is to protect PBMs and their interests.
SOURCE: https://bit.ly/3qxR6fO
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Work continues
Only, they are working against the seniors' interests. The legislation they lobby for actively harms seniors' access to healthcare treatments and medicines while enriching corporate insurance giants like UHC.
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“The reality is PBMs have been a bit of a scapegoat for drug companies, who’ve intentionally diverted attention away from them and towards PBMs, saying they’re the ones causing high drug prices,” Purvis says. “But really, drug manufacturers are the only ones who can set and raise drug prices.”
This statement is just flatly untrue. Studies, not drug companies, have consistently shown that PBMs use underhanded pricing practices to game the system and increase prices to pad their profits.
SOURCE: https://bit.ly/3quLIu7
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Caps on out-of-pocket costs
More government price controls are never the answer. They will not only fail to solve the problem, but they will also reduce medical innovation. This is because capping prices forces drug manufacturers to reduce costs elsewhere, like in R&D. As a result, the American healthcare industry will develop fewer new treatments and cures, making seniors far worse off.
SOURCE: https://herit.ag/3d9NAW0
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Establishing affordability boards
"The nine most terrifying words in the English language are: I'm from the Government, and I'm here to help." - President Ronald Reagan
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Increasing price transparency
Adding more government interference into the healthcare market won't increase transparency. In fact, it will do precisely the opposite.
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AARP CEO Lauds Activists for Fighting for Rx Bill
It's no wonder why this is the case. AARP consistently advocates for the interests of big insurance companies like its financial partner, UnitedHealthcare (UHC). UHC stands to make a fortune off the Inflation Reduction Act, and in particular, Medicare negotiation. So, it's not surprising that AARP is celebrating the bill's passage, despite the harm it will do to seniors.
SOURCE: https://on.wsj.com/3JxhaAi
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The Inflation Reduction Act of 2022 will allow Medicare to negotiate prices of some high-cost drugs for the first time, put an annual limit on Medicare Part D beneficiaries’ out-of-pocket costs and impose tax penalties on drugmakers that increase prices more than the rate of inflation, among other things.
Medicare "negotiation" isn't really negotiation at all. It's an extortion racket. Medicare sets the price of prescription drugs at artificially low rates, and if manufacturers refuse to sell at Medicare's predetermined price, the federal government imposes an excise tax of 95% on them.
SOURCE: https://bit.ly/3U3Doip
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Congress’ passage of a sweeping bill that will help millions of Medicare enrollees better afford life-sustaining medications was fueled by a blizzard of recent legislation to make prescription drugs more affordable at the state level.
The Inflation Reduction Act (IRA) will actually harm Medicare enrollees by stripping them of access to lifesaving medicines. By imposing onerous price controls, the legislation will force drug manufacturers to scale back on R&D, limiting innovation, and leaving seniors with fewer new medicines to choose.
SOURCE: https://bit.ly/3xiCrsD
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Emily Paulin, AARP, August 18, 2022
Corrected by Commitment to Seniors
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How States Helped Lower Prescription Drug Costs
More accurate title: "How States Helped Strip Seniors of Healthcare Access"
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