Drug pricing and supply chain issues can be a wonky topic, but the reviews are in, and folks have loved this conversation with our guest Antonio Ciaccia. He explains how Pharmacy Benefit Managers (PBMs) make it difficult for patients to access affordable care.
Read on for parts of our conversation that didn’t make it into the final cut of the show.
In The News
Report: Chronic conditions lead to medical debt at all income levels. Medical debt has frequently been associated with cancer and, more recently, diabetes treatment, but there are other chronic conditions that contribute significantly to medical bills — such as heart disease, asthma, anxiety and lung disease. (MedCity News)
Congress to advance ‘clean’ FDA user fee deal. Lawmakers this week will advance a deal to fund drug and medical device evaluations at the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) for the next five years, but without any additional policy reforms. (The Hill)
What to do When Your Doctor No Longer Wishes to Provide you Pain Support
Picture this: After years of receiving treatment from your medical provider, you are suddenly told you can no longer continue your current treatment plan. You are being referred to a psychologist to learn coping skills to manage the symptoms of your complex illness/condition. Such sudden discontinuation to care can create worry and possibly other kinds of harm. This is the scenario many people with complex illnesses/conditions find themselves in today.
Hi there! My name is Sami and I have been sharing my journey as a dancer with Hypermobile Ehlers Danlos Syndrome @ze.brave and zebrave.com!
I was 12 when my first EDS symptoms appeared (joint pain), but I wasn't diagnosed until I was 26 (one year ago!). I had 14 years of trials and errors, misdiagnosis, surgery, being #gaslit, and pain until I finally received an answer.
On last Friday’s episode of the Patients Rising Podcast, Antonio Ciaccia weighed in on the power PBMs hold over the drug pricing ecosystem.
In this un-aired conversation, he explains how vertical integration in health care, such as when an insurer owns and operates a PBM, has decreased competition in the health care space.
Antonio Ciaccia: “…PBMs are not really just PBMs anymore. They are insurance companies, owned by the same company that owns the PBM, owned by the same company that owns the rebate aggregator or the group purchasing organization, owned by the same enterprise that owns wholesaler relationships, owned by the same companies that own their own pharmacies and so on and so on. These companies that were once very simply referred to as PBMs are now massive health care conglomerates that live at every single stage of the supply chain.”
Dr. Mass and David have partnered with medical professionals and health care experts to create a roadmap to a more transparent and accessible system that values patient-centered care.
Keyla Caba, a member of the Patient’s Rising community, got to attend Free2Care’s Annual Conference to share the work Patients Rising Concierge is doing to find solutions for patients. Our patient advocates are doing amazing work across the country, so be sure to follow along on social to see their advocacy efforts.
We’ll be back in your inbox next Wednesday with the next edition of this newsletter.
Sincerely,
Terry Wilcox
CEO & Founder Patients Rising
Patients Rising, 700 12th Street NW Suite 700, Washington, District Of Columbia 20005, United States, 202-751-1186
