House, Senate find bipartisan agreement to lower cost of prescription drugs
ST. PAUL, MN – After a May 15 conference committee reconciled differences between House and Senate versions of Representative Alice Mann’s bill to lower the cost of prescription drugs, the House today passed bipartisan legislation to regulate and require transparency from Pharmacy Benefit Managers (PBMs). It will now be sent to the Governor for his signature.
“I ran for office because I couldn’t hear any more stories of people suffering at the hands of Big Pharma and PBMs,” said Rep. Alice Mann. “This is the result of hours of discussion between a bipartisan group of doctors in the House and Senate and I’m proud to say we came to a compromise that will bring down the cost of prescription drugs – the number one driving force in the cost of our healthcare system.”
PBMs are a middle man between drug manufacturers and pharmacies, developing and maintaining lists of covered drugs (formularies) that they offer to pharmacies. Drug manufacturers give PBMs rebates – or kickbacks – to encourage the PBM to place their product on the formulary, with no guarantee that the rebate will be passed on to consumers. Higher rebates incentivize PBMs to remove less expensive drugs from formularies, and encourage companies to raise list prices, raising the price of prescription drugs for patients.
Rep. Mann’s comprehensive bill will require PBMs to be licensed by the Minnesota Department of Commerce, which will have the ability to suspend, revoke, or place a PBM on probation. PBMs will be required to make annual reports to Commerce, and to present cost and payment information when requested.
The bill was finalized in a six-member bipartisan, bicameral conference committee that included the legislature’s four doctors: Rep. Alice Mann (DFL – Lakeville), Rep. Kelly Morrison (DFL – Deephaven), Sen. Scott Jensen (R – Chaska), and Sen. Matt Klein (DFL – Mendota Heights).
Stats and Figures:
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As of 2016, the three largest PBMs (Express Scripts, CVS Health, and OptumRx) accounted for 78% of the market.
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West Virginia removed PBMs from their Medical Assistance program and saved $38 million dollars.
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Prescription drug spending went up seven percent each year between 2012 and 2016.
Rep. Alice Mann is a family practice physician who has served patients at Northfield Hospital’s emergency room and the Lakeville Family Health Clinic.
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