Aug 23Blue Shield Breaks with CVS — Now What?A fascinating, if somewhat imperfect, move this month by Blue Shield of California is sparking interesting questions about the future of the “Big PBM” business model and where it might go from here. If last week’s reports of plummeting shares among CVS, UnitedHealth, Cigna and yes, even GoodRx, is any…Health Insurance In Usa2 min readHealth Insurance In Usa2 min read
Jul 11PUTT Opinion: The Deadliest Addiction in the U.S. Isn’t What You Think It IsThe deadliest addiction in the U.S. may not be meth, cocaine, heroin or even fentanyl. The deadliest addiction in the U.S. is prescription drug kickback money, with habitual abusers including the largest health insurers; their pharmacy benefit managers (PBMs); and a coterie of benefits brokers and consultants who help themselves…Pharmacy Benefit Manager3 min readPharmacy Benefit Manager3 min read
May 26Bravo to American Pharmacy Cooperative, Inc. for Calling On “Big 3” PBMs’ Largest Investor to Use Its Influence To Restrain PBM Economically Damaging PracticesThis week American Pharmacy Cooperative, Inc. (APCI) took a bold step in the ongoing campaign for PBM reform: they openly called on Vanguard Inc., …Wall Street3 min readWall Street3 min read
Mar 28March Madness: PUTT’s Legislative RoundupHappy Legislative March Madness! Many state legislatures are barreling towards the end of their Spring session, and it’s time for an update on what’s happening across the country in the fight for transparency against PBMs/PBCs. …Legislation4 min readLegislation4 min read
Mar 10Bad PBM Action of the Month:Punishing a Small Town Pharmacy for an NPI Mix Up by Cutting Off Billing, Seemingly Indefinitely Robertson County, Texas is a small, picturesque county just north of College Station (home of Texas A & M). Population 16,958, it’s the last place you’d expect any kind of pharmacy chicanery. So when…Pharmacy Benefit Manager3 min readPharmacy Benefit Manager3 min read
Feb 25PCMA’s “Seven Figure” Ad Campaign with PBM-to-PBC Rebrand is Ironically Transparent in MotiveOne of the most remarkable aspects of last week’s U.S. Senate Commerce, Science & Transportation Committee hearing, (ICYMI: “Bringing Transparency and Accountability to Pharmacy Benefit Managers,”) was the number of committee members on both sides of the aisle who demonstrated a keen understanding of the PBM business model — and…Pharmacy Benefit Manager2 min readPharmacy Benefit Manager2 min read
Jan 312023: New Year, New Leadership and an Intensified Focus on Ending PBM AbuseJanuary’s come and gone while here at PUTT we’ve been actively developing PBM education programs and meeting with industry leaders and influencers over the last 4 weeks. …Pharmacy Benefit Manager4 min readPharmacy Benefit Manager4 min read
Dec 21, 2022PUTT’s 2022 Year in ReviewHappy Holidays! Is it 2023 yet? Kidding! 2022 was such a good year for PBM reform, we’ll be a bit sad to say goodbye. We spent much of this year focused on PBM reform education, with PUTT Executive Director Monique Whitney participating on panels at the annual Community Oncology Alliance…Advocacy4 min readAdvocacy4 min read
Nov 23, 2022Little Debbie vs. Independent Pharmacy: 5 Things to Know About a Tennessee Lawsuit that Could Impact How States Take On PBM ReformNext Wednesday, November 30th, a hearing will take place on a lawsuit you’ve likely never heard of, but which may have lasting implications for independent pharmacies in PBM reform battleground states. Below are 5 things to know about this lawsuit, and why pharmacy owners should remain alert and look out…Pharmacy3 min readPharmacy3 min read
Oct 24, 2022Federal Government: Why Do You Continue to Do Business With Known Criminals?To Congress, the Department of Defense, and Federal Government Contract Decision Makers: Today marks the first day 15,000 community pharmacies across the U.S. can no longer serve active duty and retired military covered by TRICARE. It’s a drastic cut orchestrated by Cigna-owned Express Scripts in the name of “cost savings”…Medicare4 min readMedicare4 min read