ATAP APPLAUDS FLORIDA GOVERNOR FOR PURSUING PHARMACY BENEFIT MANAGER REGULATION
ATAP APPLAUDS FLORIDA GOVERNOR FOR PURSUING PHARMACY BENEFIT MANAGER REGULATION
Florida Considering Legislative Reforms of Rogue Industry Adopted in Other States
[Clearwater, FL] [January 12, 2023] – The Alliance for Transparent and Affordable Prescriptions (ATAP), a coalition of physician and patient advocacy organizations dedicated to exposing the role of the pharmacy benefit manager (PBM) industry, applauded an announcement from Florida Governor Ron DeSantis designed to lower prescription drug prices for Floridians. The Florida Governor and his Administration are pursuing legislative proposals to regulate PBMs and lower costs for prescription drugs.
Dr. Robert Levin, a Florida-based rheumatologist and President of ATAP issued the following statement:
“ATAP is thrilled with Governor DeSantis’ legislative proposal which seeks to reign in unchecked PBM practices by placing transparency and reporting requirements on the industry.
Patient protections must be at the forefront of public policy discussions on PBMs. Patients today are suffering under a system that increases costs to a point where it prevents them from getting the medicine they need. The PBM industry profits significantly while interrupting the provider-patient relationship, solely to increase its profits. Beyond transparency and reporting, Florida should also consider legislative efforts, like other states across the country, to require that negotiated rebates received by PBMs are passed-through to patients, in turn lowering co-insurance costs for prescription drugs.
ATAP looks forward to working with Florida leaders to continue to shine a light on the PBM industry and find solutions to ensure patients are not paying inflated prices for necessary and life-saving medications. We will help officials and policymakers see what is really happening in our exam rooms, and our patient’s wallets, due to PBM practices.”
ATAP continues to support efforts to force the PBM industry to disclose rebate data and encourage transparency and reporting requirements for all entities involved in the prescription drug supply chain – PBMs, insurers, and manufacturers. ATAP also advocates in favor of legislation that would lower prescription co-insurance costs to patients for specialty medications by requiring negotiated rebates received by PBMs may be passed on to the patients at the pharmacy counter.
About ATAP
ATAP was created in 2017 with a mission to address prescription drug costs and patient access to affordable treatment by regulating PBM practices and reforming the drug industry through educational outreach and grassroots advocacy initiatives at both the state and federal levels. Driven by the reality that many patients struggle to afford their medications, the physician and patient advocacy organizations joined to expose the abusive practices of PBMs.
###
To schedule an interview with Dr. Robert Levin or another ATAP spokesperson, contact Dan Rene of kglobal at 202-329-8357. Please visit http://www.atapadvocates.com