In case you missed it, Johnny Garcia, PharmD, Senior Director, Policy at the Pharmaceutical Care Management Association (PCMA), explains the critical role pharmacy benefit companies play in supporting all members of the prescription drug supply chain, including retail pharmacies, in a new op-ed published in the Orlando Sentinel. Garcia writes:

“Whether you’re a pharmacist working at a local retail pharmacy or at a pharmacy benefit company (also known as a PBM), we all share the same goals — to ensure patients get the treatments they need in a timely manner and ultimately, to make everyone healthier.” 

“In order to achieve those outcomes, pharmacists, pharmacy benefit companies and other links in the supply chain have to work together to enact patient-driven solutions based on experience and clinical data.”

Garcia then goes on to highlight how pharmacy benefit companies work alongside retail pharmacists to ensure the best outcomes for patients. He writes:

“While a local pharmacist may know you personally, PBM pharmacists look at your entire clinical history — across providers and pharmacies — to make sure you have the most successful treatments… Whether it’s serving vulnerable and elderly communities or Florida workers who rely on getting the most out of their employers’ benefit plan, patients are better served when all the entities responsible for giving them access to prescription drugs work hand-in-hand.”

He closes by emphasizing that pharmacists across all pharmacy settings have similar goals when it comes to patient care:

“As pharmacists, we all have similar goals and I encourage us to work together to ensure our patients have access to affordable medications. Pharmacy benefit companies will continue to support retail pharmacists and other members of the supply chain to reduce costs and improve health outcomes for patients, and we hope others in the system will do the same.”

Pharmacy benefit companies deliver financial and clinical results by saving patients approximately $1,040 per person per year and reducing more than 100 million medication errors per year. As Congress continues to consider legislation that will lower prescription drug costs, it’s important that lawmakers reject policies that target the pharmacy benefits hundreds of millions of Americans rely on and remove the one check against Big Pharma’s otherwise limitless pricing power.

Read the full op-ed from Johnny Garcia in the Orlando Sentinel HERE.

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See a recent PCMA blog highlighting how former Members of Congress are warning Congress against advancing legislation targeting pharmacy benefit companies HERE.

See what more lawmakers have had to say about pharmacy benefits securing savings for employers and patients, and the root cause of high prescription drug prices – Big Pharma’s anti-competitive tactics – HERE.

See PCMA’s guide to understanding the role and value of pharmacy benefit companies HERE.

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PCMA is the national association representing America’s pharmacy benefit companies. Pharmacy benefit companies are working every day to secure savings, enable better health outcomes, and support access to quality prescription drug coverage for more than 275 million patients. Learn more at www.pcmanet.org