Pharmacy Benefit Managers (PBMs) have been in the news lately. PBMs manage drug benefits for insurers, self-insured employer health plans, Medicare Advantage plans and Medicare Part D. Recently executives from the three largest PBMs were hauled before Congress to discuss their business models. One reason for scrutiny is that the three largest PBMs control about 80% of the market.
Category: Cost of Healthcare
Monday Links
- Yglesias: Everything you want to know about combatting monkeypox, and then some.
- Monkeypox: doing the same thing over and over again and expecting a different result?
- Paxlovid rebound: when a person (like President Biden) tests positive for the coronavirus again even after initially testing negative following a round of treatment with the antiviral is more common than you think.
- CBO: Drug pricing bill will Lead to higher launch prices for new drugs.
- View this article for more information.
- CBO: Drug pricing bill will lead to 60 fewer drugs over the next three decades.
- Do hospital patients need their own in-house advocate? Covid issues
Friday Links
- Why are there so few Covid cases in Africa, compared to the rest of the world? Speculative
- Hospitals are still evading the law on transparency.
- Can a pharmacist deny a patient a morning-after pill?
- How the clothes you wear can affect your health. Futuristic
- More reasons not to tax people with the highest incomes. Insightful
- Are Democrats robbing Medicare to pay for Obamacare?
Emergency Room Abuse
During her ER visit, all [Pell] received was the ice pack and the bandage. That’s it. She wasn’t treated in any other way. Doctors made no diagnosis. And she made sure that no one touched her before she knew if they were in network or not.
Pell received a bill for $5,751.