SCPC Calls for Solutions that Protect Long-term Care Patients and Pharmacies as White House Announces Initial List for Medicare Drug Price Negotiations

DATE: August 29, 2023

Washington, D.C. (August 29, 2023) – The Senior Care Pharmacy Coalition (SCPC), the leading national voice for the long-term care pharmacy community, released a statement today regarding the Biden administration’s announcement of the first 10 drugs selected for Medicare price negotiations, eight of which are heavily utilized by patients served by long-term care pharmacies.

“The Senior Care Pharmacy Coalition supports access to prescription drugs for all consumers, including the Medicare beneficiaries our members predominately serve. However, we must ensure that pharmacies – and long-term care pharmacies and the patients they serve, in particular – do not become collateral damage in any efforts to address rising medication costs,” stated Alan Rosenbloom, president and CEO of the Senior Care Pharmacy Coalition. “Long-term care patients and pharmacies will be severely and disproportionately impacted by these price negotiations, given that eight of the medications named by the Biden administration are heavily prescribed to patients in long-term care facilities. Moving forward, our policymakers must consider the important role of long-term care pharmacies in improving health outcomes for the Medicare population so as not to limit patient access to the medications and other important long-term care pharmacy services they rely on.”

Patients served by long-term care pharmacies, on average, are prescribed a higher number of medications by a higher number of providers, making the role of the pharmacist especially important in ensuring proper medication management.

Rosenbloom pointed out that insurance companies and pharmacy benefit managers (PBMs) – not pharmacies – are the major drivers of high drug costs and urged legislators to advance policies that will create more transparency between PBMs and Medicare Part D. Earlier this summer, SCPC applauded the Senate Finance Committee for passing legislation to curtail PBMs’ harmful actions.

LTC pharmacies lose money on most of the medicines they prescribe to patients, realizing a profit on just a small portion of the prescriptions they fill. Thus, the Biden administration’s decision to target eight medications heavily prescribed to the patients LTC pharmacies serve will have an immediate and detrimental impact on the long-term care pharmacy community.

“Our legislators and public officials should be reducing burdens on long-term care pharmacies, rather than making it more difficult and costly for them to serve their patients across the U.S.,” added Rosenbloom. “We must keep the focus on legislation that puts patients first and addresses some of the longstanding problems within our healthcare system – most notably, those with PBMs.”

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About Senior Care Pharmacy Coalition

The Senior Care Pharmacy Coalition (SCPC) is the only national organization exclusively representing the interests of LTC pharmacies, representing 75% of the sector overall. Its members operate in all 50 states and serve 850,000 patients daily in skilled nursing and assisted living facilities across the country. Visit seniorcarepharmacies.org/ to learn more.