Prime Therapeutics, the fifth largest pharmacy benefit manager (PBM), has just released its first look at drug spending data for 2017. The results strongly contradict the public rhetoric about excessive growth in drug spending and prices.
Prime analyzed three groups of third-party payers: commercial (employers and health plans), Medicare Part D, and Medicaid.
- For all payers, overall drug spending growth was negligible—below 1% or negative.
- Post-rebate costs for traditional drugs declined compared with 2016. Specialty drug costs grew by only 3.7% for commercial payers and declined for Medicaid.
- Utilization—more people taking more prescriptions—was more important than pricing for drug spending growth.
The data demonstrate that public perception of outrageous drug spending growth has not caught up with 2017’s realities. Sorry to be the bearer of non-fake news.
Alas, I am probably naive to believe that these facts will cause our politicians to transform their thinking before complaining, tweeting, or bloviating.
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