News from the fight to
#SaveIndependentPharmacy
New York Times The Middlemen series
High insulin prices spur a federal lawsuit against three pharmacy benefit managers
The federal government is suing some big pharmacy benefit managers over a system of drug rebates that regulators say has made the price of insulin soar for diabetic patients.
Legalized Racketeering? How PBMs Skirt the Law to Rake in Billions
Pharmacy Benefit Managers (PBMs) have been under scrutiny lately for their actions as middlemen in the flow of prescription drugs from manufacturers to patients. But perhaps their worst actions are buried within a maze of consolidation and paperwork. Big Insurance has consolidated the entire pharmaceutical benefit, claim, and dispensing sector to squeeze as much money out of patients as possible.
FTC head Lina Khan fighting Big Tech, Big Pharma and Big Groceries as trustbuster
FTC Chair Lena Khan was featured on a segment of 60 Minutes this past Sunday. The youngest-ever chair of the Federal Trade Commission sat down with Lesley Stahl to discuss how corporate consolidation and anti-competitive business practices are driving up prices throughout the U.S. economy.
Bruised by Government Report, Cigna's Pharmacy Business Sues the Federal Trade Commission
Whistleblower, former Cigna VP, and reformed insurance propagandist Wendell Potter takes you behind the scenes to provide a glimpse into the reasoning behind the lawsuit his former company filed this week against the Federal Trade Commission (FTC).
FTC Sues Prescription Drug Middlemen for Artificially Inflating Insulin Drug Prices
Caremark, Express Scripts, Optum, and their affiliates created a broken rebate system that inflated insulin drug prices, boosting PBM profits at the expense of vulnerable patients, the FTC alleges.
Rally outside Optum HQ brings debate over pharmacy benefits managers to Twin Cities
Patients, providers, and legislators gathered to allege biggest players are ballooning drug costs while running independent pharmacies out of business; Optum denied claims.
PBM Practices Spark Outrage and Protests Outside Express Scripts Headquarters
High drug prices and pharmacy deserts: Protesters blame drug middlemen, demand regulation
‘It’s beyond unethical’: Opaque conflicts of interest permeate prescription drug benefits
A STAT News Investigation
The biggest Pharmacy Benefit Managers (PBMs) are profiting by systematically underpaying independent drugstores, creating “pharmacy deserts” across the country.
The third in “THE MIDDLEMEN” series of articles by reporters Rebecca Robins and Reed Abelson investigating PBMs .