Yesterday, Senate Finance Committee Chairman Ron Wyden (D-Ore.) and Ranking Member Mike Crapo (R-Idaho) held a press conference with pharmacy leaders, pharmacists and patients to discuss the urgent need for Congress to finalize bipartisan pharmacy benefit manager (PBM) reforms. NCPA CEO Douglas Hoey, pharmacy owner and former NCPA president Michele Belcher, and pharmacy owner Jack Holt were invited to join the press conference outside the U.S. Capitol to decry the oversized influence of PBMs. After the conference Sens. Wyden and Crapo issued a letter to Finance Committee members reaffirming their commitment to enacting meaningful PBM reforms during this Congress. In both the letter and their remarks, they emphasized support for a package they’ve been spearheading for months with provisions requiring the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services to define contract terms and conditions that are “reasonable and relevant” under Medicare Part D and force PBMs to comply while creating a process for pharmacies to report problematic contract terms or potential violations Belcher, owner of Grants Pass Pharmacy in Grants Pass, Ore., said that while some will call pharmacy closures a mere “contraction” in the economy, it’s really a tragedy. “My patients are my neighbors. I grew up with many of them. I knew their parents when my dad was their local pharmacist. I’ve been taking care of them and seeing them as they grow,” she said. “What I resent most about PBMs and their diabolical practices is they make it harder for me to care about the people I care about most. Without PBM reform, pharmacies like mine will close.”
Holt, who has been practicing pharmacy for 42 years in Washington and Oregon, said Medicare and Medicaid reforms aren’t just good policies. They are “core responsibilities” of Congress. “My message is this: Congress must do its part because patients and pharmacists simply cannot wait any longer. The harms that PBMs inflict are well documented. PBMs often prevent patients from using their trusted and convenient pharmacy, and steering patients can cause major issues. PBMs are forcing pharmacies to close by paying them below cost,” he said.
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