Grassley Presses FTC to Investigate Pharmacy Benefit Managers’ Role in Consumer Drug Prices
WASHINGTON – Following a deadlocked
Federal Trade Commission (FTC) vote in February over whether to initiate a study
into the business practices of Pharmacy Benefit Managers (PBMs), Sen. Chuck
Grassley (R-Iowa) is urging
the FTC to find consensus and move forward on a study examining bipartisan
concerns about competition within the PBM industry.
“…PBMs
operate with little to no transparency, making it very difficult if not
impossible to understand the flow of money in the prescription drug marketplace
and how PBMs determine the prices for prescription drugs. Recent
consolidations between PBMs and insurance providers have resulted in vertical
integration whereby a small number of companies now manage the vast majority of
prescription drug benefits,” Grassley wrote.
In
a letter to FTC Chairwoman Lina Khan, Grassley urges reconsideration of a
revised and more targeted study proposal and highlights the bipartisan support
for such a move among both FTC commissioners and members of Congress.
“There
is widespread bipartisan support for examining PBMs and looking into whether
they are causing Americans to pay higher prices for prescription drugs. I hear
stories about rising drug costs all the time at my 99 county meetings. A study
into the business practices of these intermediaries would provide transparency
and insight about possible competitive harms,” Grassley continued.
Grassley
is currently the ranking member of the Senate Judiciary Committee, which
maintains jurisdiction over parts of FTC’s work and competition policy. The
senator has also introduced bipartisan
legislation mandating an FTC study of the issue, which was approved in committee by a
voice vote.
Previously,
as chairman of the Senate Finance Committee, Grassley convened hearings with PBM
executives to scrutinize this opaque industry because of its significant role
in the prices of prescription drugs.
Full
text of Grassley’s letter to Khan can be found HERE.
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