2022 Legislation
Georgia lawmakers on both sides of the aisle are working to alleviate how much patients across our community pay at the pharmacy counter for treatments they need.
Many Georgia patients, particularly those living with chronic conditions, need consistent and reliable access to the treatments prescribed by their health care provider to manage symptoms, control their illness, and lead healthier lives. Over 6 million Georgians are living with at least one chronic illness, such as heart disease, HIV, diabetes, or Alzheimer’s.
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However, powerful middlemen in the health care industry, called pharmacy benefit managers (PBMs), are driving up the cost of care and blocking access to lifesaving treatments for many Georgia patients. PBMs work in between health insurers and drug manufacturers to negotiate prescription drug prices and have a significant influence on patients’ ability to access and afford care. PBMs receive significant rebates and discounts from pharmaceutical companies for the cost of medications and treatments, but they don’t pass those savings on to patients receiving the care. This causes Georgians to pay more out of their own pockets for the care they need.
Fortunately, state lawmakers are exploring ways to help Georgia patients access the care they need and stop letting PBMs pocket medication discounts that are intended for patients.
Georgia House Bill 100 (HB 100), the Prescription Drug Consumer Financial Protection Act, will bring much-needed transparency into health insurer and PBM practices, and will require insurers and PBMs to pass a minimum of 80% of the rebates they receive from drug companies on to patients.
HB 100 will reform a system that allows Georgia health insurers and PBMs to improve their bottom lines at the expense of patients. This legislation will ensure patients no longer pay full price for drugs that are sold to insurers and PBMs at deep discounts. Georgians shouldn’t have to choose between affording lifesaving healthcare and their financial wellbeing.
KEY RESOURCES
​​​​​​Check out these resources to learn more about how legislators and other key stakeholders have found that these powerful health industry middlemen are putting treatments out of reach and raising costs:
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Report: House Oversight and Accountability Committee Staff | The Role of Pharmacy Benefit Managers in Prescription Drug Markets
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Report: Federal Trade Commission | Pharmacy Benefit Managers: The Powerful Middlemen Inflating Drug Costs and Squeezing Main Street Pharmacies
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Report: Federal Trade Commission | Specialty Generic Drugs: A Growing Profit Center for Vertically Integrated Pharmacy Benefit Managers
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Statement: Representative Buddy Carter | Carter statement on FTC report finding PBMs profited off chronically ill patients
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Article: New York Times | The Opaque Industry Secretly Inflating Prices for Prescription Drugs​​​