Jon Tester during a Feb. 9 hearing. Photo: Win McNamee/Getty Images
It's never pleasant for your industry when senators are publicly musing at a hearing about whether your companies should exist, but that's what happened for PBMs on Thursday.
- "I don't know why the hell they even exist," Sen. Jon Tester said at a Senate Commerce Committee hearing.
- "If given the choice would you completely eliminate PBMs?" Sen. Marsha Blackburn asked the witnesses, saying patients do not tell her PBMs save them money.
Reality check: PBMs are not going to be eliminated, and it remains to be seen whether Congress can pass anything on the subject.
- But there is growing scrutiny of the industry, as shown by the bipartisan support for the Pharmacy Benefit Manager Transparency Act at Thursday's hearing from Sens. Maria Cantwell and Chuck Grassley.
- The bill would ban practices like "spread pricing," in which PBMs charge a health plan more than they pay the pharmacy for a drug, then keep the difference. It also has transparency requirements.
- A committee spokesperson said the bill "will likely be marked up in the coming weeks."
Yes, but: Not all Republicans supported the bill, notably ranking member Ted Cruz, who warned the measure would give the FTC more authority under chair Lina Khan, who has drawn fire from Republicans. Sen. Dan Sullivan raised similar concerns.
- Grassley tried to assuage Cruz's concerns by saying the measure is a "very narrow approach to this PBM problem through FTC."
PBM's defense: PCMA CEO JC Scott said in a statement that the bill considered Thursday "does absolutely nothing to lower prescription drug costs" and would put at risk the savings that PBMs produce.
