ICYMI: PCMA Releases Policy Roadmap to Unlock an Affordable Health Care Future for Patients

Pharmacy Benefit Companies Ready to Work with Policymakers on Solutions to Build a More Competitive, Sustainable, and Affordable Prescription Drug Marketplace

In case you missed it last week, the Pharmaceutical Care Management Association (PCMA) released a new policy platform, “Unlocking an Affordable Future,” designed to provide policymakers with a roadmap to prioritize patients with public policy solutions that promote competition in the prescription drug market, lower costs, and support better health outcomes.

 

Read more from the coverage of the platform:

 

Axios: First Look: PBMs Release Their Own Drug Cost Proposals

 

“PBMs aren’t just waiting around… they’re releasing their own policy proposals aimed at lowering drug costs. Why it matters: The move from the Pharmaceutical Care Management Association is a way to seek to be proactive and show alternatives.”

 

“…The bottom line: ‘The reality is that the private market system works reasonably well for millions of patients who routinely get the prescription drugs they need at the cost they expect, and that the system can also work better to address areas where affordability is a challenge,’ [PCMA CEO JC] Scott said.”

 

Inside Health Policy: PCMA Celebrates Bill Targeting Anti-Competitive Pharma Practices

 

“[…] PCMA’s policy agenda, released Tuesday, continues to focus on the role of manufacturers, advocating for promoting competition by ending patent abuses, including those mentioned in the Affordable Prescriptions for Patients Act.”

 

“‘Policies that enhance competition will make drugs more affordable. Direct competition among products lowers prices, and competition in the prescription drug market has proven effective, with as few as six generic competitors lowering prices by 95%,’ PCMA wrote.”

 

“…Policymakers and FDA should take more steps to promote biosimilars and generics, PCMA says. Those could include streamlining the interchangeability designation in the Biologics Price Competition and Innovation Act (BPCIA), encouraging the use of generics in Medicare Part D, and increasing FDA’s resources for promoting development of alternative drugs.”

 

“…PCMA’s agenda also includes a session focused on working with clinicians to reduce patients’ drug costs… Finally, the agenda recommends steps policymakers could use to improve patients’ experiences with pharmacy care, including by supporting specialty pharmacies and home delivery, improving the accelerated approval process, and increasing transparency.”

 

Lawmakers on the U.S. Senate Committee on the Judiciary can take an important first step toward realizing the objective of a more competitive market to lower prescription drug costs this week by advancing bipartisan solutions to help crack down on big drug companies’ patent abuse. Several PCMA-supported bills are scheduled to be considered before the committee on Thursday.

 

Check out coverage of PCMA’s support for these solutions here:

 

HealthLeaders Media: Bipartisan Senate Bill Aims To Curb Drug Patent Abuse

 

“The Affordable Prescriptions for Patients Act, introduced this week in the Senate Judiciary Committee and sponsored by Sens. John Cornyn (R-TX) and Richard Blumenthal (D-CT), would lower drug prices for consumers by removing bad-faith, cumbersome hurdles in the patent review process such as the ‘patent dance’ and ‘product hopping’ that critics say are exploited by drug makers to delay market entry for cheaper generic and biosimilar alternatives…”

 

“‘PCMA applauds the reintroduction of this critical bipartisan legislation aimed at ending anti-competitive practices that game the patent system, blocking more affordable generic and biosimilar options from entering the prescription drug market,’ PCMA President and CEO JC Scott says.”

 

Inside Health Policy: PCMA Celebrates Bill Targeting Anti-Competitive Pharma Practices

 

“The Pharmaceutical Care Management Association (PCMA) celebrated the reintroduction of a bipartisan bill targeting anti-competitive practices used by drug companies Wednesday (Feb. 1).”

 

“…The PCMA-backed bill targeting pharma practices, the Affordable Prescriptions for Patients Act, was reintroduced Tuesday (Jan. 31) by Sens. John Cornyn (R-TX) and Richard Blumenthal (D-CT). The bill passed the Senate Judiciary Committee with bipartisan support in the previous legislative session.”

 

“‘…Promoting greater competition to lower prescription drug costs for patients is fundamental to the mission of pharmacy benefit companies and we look forward to supporting the successful passage of this important measure.’”

 

Read PCMA’s statement on the reintroduction of the Affordable Prescriptions for Patients Act HERE.

 

Learn more about PCMA’s public policy solutions that promote competition in the prescription drug market HERE.