Trump Unveils Drug Reforms: Rebates To PBMs At Risk

By John McManus, The McManus Group

After months of delay and suspense, in a Rose Garden ceremony, President Trump and HHS Secretary Alex Azar announced a comprehensive approach to prescription drugs, which they claimed would address major challenges:

1. high and rising drug and out-of-pocket costs
2. seniors and government programs overpaying for drugs due to lack of negotiation tools
3. foreign governments catching a free ride on industry innovation.

Trump and Azar’s speeches were accompanied by a blueprint that identified changes for immediate review and take-up, as well as a far-reaching exploration of hundreds of ideas intended to address pricing distortions that have arisen in the pharmaceutical supply chain and other government policies that hamper competition and effective negotiation.