National Poll of Likely 2024 Voters Shows Strong Bipartisan Support for Specific PBM Reform Policies and Candidates Who Support Them
01 Agosto 2024 - 8:15AM
Business Wire
Likely Voters Want Policies to Require PBM
Middlemen to Provide Value, Lower Out-of-Pocket Prescription Drug
Costs
On the heels of the latest Congressional hearing about pharmacy
benefit managers (PBMs), a damaging report from the Federal Trade
Commission and numerous media stories questioning concerning
practices of these health insurance middlemen, a national poll
released today demonstrates significant bipartisan support for
legislation to set rules to eliminate PBM conflicts of interest and
bring down patients’ out-of-pocket prescription drug costs.
The poll, conducted by the bipartisan polling team of Lake
Research Partners and Bellwether Research, found that support for
PBM reform is strong and consistent nationwide across partisan and
demographic lines. Moreover, respondents believe regulating PBMs
should be a high priority for Congress and state legislatures, with
more than two-thirds of likely voters saying that they are more
likely to vote for candidates who support PBM reform.
The key findings include:
- Nine in 10 likely voters say it’s important or very
important to have rules that require PBMs to provide value and
lower drug costs for consumers.
- Eight in 10 likely voters support policies that would
prevent PBMs from making profits based on drug prices in Medicare
and over eight in 10 support ensuring that available rebates
and other PBM-negotiated discounts are passed through to help
seniors with chronic conditions better afford their medicines.
- At least four out of five likely voters are in favor of
each policy proposal, and support is strong across party
identification – significant majorities across party lines support
each proposal.
- Nearly four in five likely voters say that regulating
PBMs as a step to reducing drug prices should be a high priority
for Congress and their state legislatures, including over a third
who say it should be a top priority.
- Seven out of 10 likely voters are more or much
more likely to vote for a candidate who supports regulating
PBMs.
“Amidst a landscape of political discord, this issue provides a
rare opportunity for bipartisan unity,” said Mark Blum, Managing
Director of the PBM Accountability Project. “As legislators,
regulators, health economists, and patient advocates continue to
uncover the many schemes through which PBMs are driving up
prescription drug costs, voters across the political spectrum are
lining up in support of legislation that would prohibit predatory
PBM practices and ensure that drug savings are passed along to
patients. Voters are voicing overwhelming support for Members of
Congress who seize the historic opportunity this year to enact
legislative solutions that will lower out-of-pocket prescription
drug costs for Americans.”
David Mermin, Lake Research Partners, said: “It’s clear
the American people are tired of increasing out-of-pocket costs for
their medicines. Once they become aware of PBMs and the role these
corporations play in driving up costs, respondents are supportive
of policies and regulations that would prevent PBMs from profiting
off drug costs.”
Christine Matthews, Bellwether Research, reiterated:
“Policies to regulate PBMs have overwhelmingly high support across
party lines with likely voters more likely to support a candidate
who is willing and ready to hold PBMs accountable.”
PBMs currently benefit from an opaque and complex drug pricing
system at the expense of patients, independent pharmacies and
American taxpayers. Respondents are intensely concerned by the
specifics of how PBMs currently operate in the prescription drug
market, including that they are incentivized to drive up prices and
that three companies currently hold an effective monopoly.
Respondents are somewhat or very concerned that:
- PBMs drive up prescription drug prices in Medicare and our
insurance plans (85%)
- A Wall Street Journal investigation found that for a set of
so-called specialty drugs, both Cigna and CVS’s prices were at
least 24 times higher on average than what the medicines’
manufacturers charge (85%)
- A recent study found that PBM-affiliated mail-order pharmacies
had markups that were more than three times higher than markups at
retail pharmacies (86%)
- A GAO report found that seniors on Medicare were charged four
times as much for rebated drugs than the PBMs and plans paid for
the same drugs (85%)
To view the research findings, click here. To learn more about
PBM-related policy solutions, click here.
About The PBM Accountability Project
The PBM Accountability Project brings together leaders and
stakeholders across healthcare, labor, business, pharmacy and
consumer patient advocacy to help ensure that patients and our
private and public sector health plans aren’t overpaying for the
prescription medicines we need. Our organization is working to
educate the public and advance solutions to help redirect
prescription drug savings from very high PBM profits back to
patients, employee health plans and taxpayers. To learn more about
the PBM Accountability Project, visit pbmaccountability.org.
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Mike Kapsa mike@pbmaccountability.org