PBMs Committed to Building a More Equitable Health Care System

(Washington, D.C.) — Pharmaceutical Care Management Association President and CEO JC Scott issued the following statement on a new report by the U.S. Health and Human Services Assistant Secretary for Planning and Evaluation (ASPE), Office of Health Policy, showing that minorities in Medicare are the most likely to experience prescription drug affordability problems.

“The Administration’s research on health inequities is an important guidepost, and we are encouraged by the movement and dialogue in this area,” said JC Scott, Pharmaceutical Care Management Association (PCMA) President and CEO. “We recognize that these significant inequities still exist in our health care system. For America’s PBMs, our mission is simple: increase affordable access to prescription drugs for everyone. We believe care should be patient-focused, equitable, and affordable.”

The PBM industry supports policies that advance a more equitable health care system, lower costs, reduce disparities in clinical outcomes, and improve the quality of pharmaceutical care. Our vision for a more equitable health care system is built on four patient-centered goals.

  • Address disparities in access, disease burden, and outcomes. Inequities and disparities affect every aspect of health—from access to care to disease burden to outcomes. PBMs are advancing a range of strategies to improve alignment between the accessibility and experience of care and individual patients’ needs, preferences, and goals.
  • Promote equitable, affordable pharmacy benefit design. PBMs are helping employers and other drug coverage sponsors advance equitable care through patient-centered quality improvement initiatives in areas of clinical vulnerability and disparities, such as diabetes and other non-communicable diseases.
  • Invest in meaningful, data, evidence, and measurement. Without accurate and up-to-date data, it is difficult to identify the individual factors that drive disparities and how best to address them. PBMs are actively investing in and advancing new ways to use available data and other indicators to advance equitable care.
  • Create a culture of equity and patient-centered care. The quality, affordability, and accessibility of pharmaceutical care should not differ because of an individual’s personal circumstance, nor should their health care. The PBM industry is committed to sustained industry action on diversity, equity, and inclusion (DE&I) within our own workplaces; in partnership with stakeholders across our shared health care system; and in collaboration on behalf of patients with drug coverage sponsors, health care prescribers, and pharmacists.

Click here to read the full report: “Working Together for a More Equitable Health Care System.”

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PCMA is the national association representing America’s pharmacy benefit managers (PBMs).  PBMs administer prescription drug plans for more than 266 million Americans who have health insurance from a variety of sponsors including:  commercial health plans, self-insured employer plans, union plans, Medicare Part D plans, the Federal Employees Health Benefits Program (FEHBP), state government employee plans, Medicaid plans, and others.