Washington DC – The House Ways and Means Committee has introduced a bill that would reform the Medicare marketplace’s pharmacy benefit managers, the intermediaries who control negotiations between insurance companies and biopharmaceutical manufacturers, unfairly jacking up the prices patients pay at the pharmacy counter. Following the unanimous approval, Jay Timmons, president and CEO of the National Association of Manufacturers, issued the following statement:
“NAM commends the Ways and Means Committee for taking unanimous and strong steps toward reforming the PBM system and lowering health care costs for all Americans.
“When Americans are facing rising prices for drugs and treatments, it could very well be because PBMs are driving up prices. These intermediaries have minimal transparency. Its practices distort the market, raising the list prices patients pay for drugs while making it harder for manufacturers to provide high-quality, affordable health benefits.
“By increasing the transparency of PBMs’ business models and decoupling their compensation from drug list prices, these important PBM provisions will significantly reduce costs for seniors who rely on Medicare for health coverage. Congress should move forward with these important reforms.
“Additionally, manufacturers are encouraging Congress to enact similar reforms in the commercial insurance market to reduce health care costs for manufacturing workers who participate in employer-sponsored insurance.”
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The National Association of Manufacturers is the largest manufacturer association in the United States, representing manufacturers large and small in all industry sectors in all 50 states. Manufacturing employs approximately 13 million men and women, contributes $2.89 trillion annually to the U.S. economy, and accounts for 53 percent of private sector research and development. NAM is a strong voice for the manufacturing industry and a leading advocate for policy issues that help manufacturers compete in the global economy and create jobs across the United States. For more information about NAM or to follow us on Twitter and Facebook, please visit: www.nam.org.
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