The FTC Released a Scathing Interim Report on PBMs. What’s Next?

The Federal Trade Commission recently released an interim report that details how the practices of pharmacy benefit managers negatively impact patients and pharmacies. Some experts hope for legislative action based on the report.

By Marissa Plescia on July 18, 2024

About two years after launching an investigation into pharmacy benefit managers, the Federal Trade Commission has finally released some of its findings — and they don’t bode well for the prescription drug middlemen.

Last week’s interim report explains how concentrated the PBM market has become, allowing the companies to generate outsize profits while patients and independent pharmacies struggle. The six largest PBMs — CVS Caremark, Express Scripts, Optum Rx, Humana Pharmacy Solutions, MedImpact and Prime Therapeutics — manage nearly 95% of all prescriptions filled in the U.S.

“The FTC’s interim report lays out how dominant pharmacy benefit managers can hike the cost of drugs — including overcharging patients for cancer drugs,” said FTC Chair Lina M. Khan in a statement. “The report also details how PBMs can squeeze independent pharmacies that many Americans — especially those in rural communities — depend on for essential care. The FTC will continue to use all our tools and authorities to scrutinize dominant players across healthcare markets and ensure that Americans can access affordable healthcare.”

[...]