In a letter to Federal Trade Commission (FTC) Chair Lina M. Khan, Rep. Earl L. “Buddy” Carter (R-GA) called for an investigation into Pharmacy Benefit Manager’s (PBMs) predatory practices, which lead to higher prices on prescription medications for patients.
Rep. Carter, a pharmacist by trade, is joined by fellow pharmacist Rep. Diana Harshbarger (R-TN) in calling for the report, which will hold these pharmaceutical industry middlemen accountable for harming patients' access to lifesaving drugs.
In the letter, the Members write: “Over the past two years, we witnessed how important that access is as the nation continues to rely on pharmacies to care for underserved and at-risk communities by ensuring access to COVID-19 testing, vaccination, and therapeutics. PBMs should not continue to threaten this important access.”
The Members continue: “We believe this investigation is necessary to obtain an understanding of conflicts of interest, anti-competitive conduct and marketplace distortions that are causing prescription drug prices to increase continuously.”
Read the full text of the letter to Chair Khan here.
Original source can be found here.
