ALBANY- State Department of Financial Services (DFS) has adopted a new regulation outlining the process for Pharmacy Benefit Managers (PBMs) to obtain a license to operate in New York. A pharmacy benefit manager is a company that provides prescription drug benefits to consumers on behalf of health insurers. Express Scripts, CVS Caremark, and Optum Rx are three of the nation’s largest PBM’s.
In 2022, the state legislature passed a law that required DFS to develop a licensing process for PBMs by January 1, 2024. The goal of licensing PBMs is to address problematic practices in the industry including opaque pricing structures in inflated rebates that drive up consumer cost-share percentages.
The state hopes to lower drug costs for consumers by more closely monitor prescription drug companies, which currently do not need to be licensed to do business in the state. Under the law, DFS also has the authority to investigate complaints of PBM misconduct and spikes in the pricing of prescription drugs.
Read the full article here
Leave a Reply