In Advance of Trump Drug Pricing Speech, National LTC Pharmacy Advocacy Group Praises Administration for Driving Reform Discussion

DATE: May 10, 2018

Washington, DC — In advance of President Trump’s expected Friday presentation on drug pricing, the Senior Care Pharmacy Coalition (SCPC) praised the Administration for its ongoing effort to keep broad-based reform front and center in the national health policy debate, and noted HHS Secretary Alex Azar, CMS Administrator Seema Verma and FDA Commissioner Scott Gottlieb are effectively communicating the clear need for more pricing transparency and market-oriented policy initiatives.

“To cut through the Beltway clutter, credit is due to the Trump Administration, particularly the key health policy officials who have consistently offered blunt, objective assessments of a drug pricing marketplace and regulatory framework failing consumers and failing our nation,” stated Alan G. Rosenbloom, President and CEO of SCPC, the only Washington-based organization exclusively representing the interests of long-term care (LTC) pharmacies and the patients they serve.

“Secretary Azar, Administrator Verma, and Commissioner Gottlieb have not been shy about spotlighting provocative, big-picture, reform-minded observations — and we believe this has contributed positively to the ongoing national debate,” Rosenbloom continued. “By doing so, they have helped spur action by the relevant congressional committees such as House Judiciary, Senate HELP and Senate Aging — and have earned the attention of the myriad players along the drug pricing chain.”

Rosenbloom expressed concern regarding the swift, dramatic round of mergers and acquisitions amongst insurance companies, pharmacy benefit managers (PBMs), distributors, providers and others resulting in worrisome consolidation and cross-market integration.

“Evidence is growing that these developments undermine quality of health care and use of the most effective medications for patients, while increasing out-of-pocket costs for consumers and government expenditures for health care,” Rosenbloom noted.  He pointed out that three PBMs administer more than 90% of prescriptions dispensed to seniors in the nation’s long-term care facilities, and two of these companies may soon be parts of large national health insurance companies.

“Consumers in general and seniors, in particular, will benefit not just from enhanced congressional and regulatory scrutiny of each link in the drug supply chain, but also from the continued, informed discussion driven by the Trump Administration,” Rosenbloom concluded.

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The Senior Care Pharmacy Coalition (SCPC) is the only national organization exclusively representing the interests of LTC pharmacies. Its members operate in all 50 states and serve 750,000 patients daily in skilled nursing and assisted living facilities across the country. Visit seniorcarepharmacies.org  to learn more.