States are charging ahead with drug price-fixing lawsuits against pharmacy benefit managers, viewing the litigation as a more effective way to provide direct relief to local taxpayers than potential federal action would be.
Vermont is the latest to sue, last week accusing CVS Health Corp.'s Caremark and Evernorth’s Express Scripts of inflating drug prices.
Caremark, Express Scripts, and UnitedHealth Group’s OptumRx Inc. dominate prescription drug coverage for US health plans and employers, making up nearly 80% of the market.
The Federal Trade Commission is expected to file its own suit against those major PBMs, but states aren’t backing down.
“What the FTC does or doesn’t do has no influence on us or our work,” said Josh DeFonce, media director for the Office of Indiana Attorney General Todd Rokita (R), who brought a March suit against CVS, OptumRx, and other defendants. “Our lawsuit is to hold these companies accountable, change their behavior, and bring back money to Indiana.”
California, Hawaii, Illinois, Kentucky, and Ohio have also brought similar lawsuits under state laws in a effort to compensate local communities.
Antitrust attorneys expect additional states and municipalities to sue to enforce their own laws.
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