FTC releases interim staff report on pharmacy benefit managers

The Federal Trade Commission announced it has published an interim report on the prescription drug middleman industry that underscores the impact pharmacy benefit managers, or PBMs, have on the accessibility and affordability of prescription drugs. “The interim staff report, which is part of an ongoing inquiry launched in 2022 by the FTC, details how increasing vertical integration and concentration has enabled the six largest PBMs to manage nearly 95 percent of all prescriptions filled in the United States. This vertically integrated and concentrated market structure has allowed PBMs to profit at the expense of patients and independent pharmacists,” the FTC stated. The Commission’s interim report stems from special orders the FTC issued in 2022, under Section 6(b) of the FTC Act, to the six largest PBMs-Caremark Rx, LLC; Express Scripts, Inc.; OptumRx, Inc.; Humana Pharmacy Solutions, Inc.; Prime Therapeutics LLC; and MedImpact Healthcare Systems, Inc. In 2023, the FTC issued additional orders to Zinc Health Services, LLC, Ascent Health Services, LLC, and Emisar Pharma Services LLC, which are each rebate aggregating entities, also known as “group purchasing organizations,” that negotiate drug rebates on behalf of PBMs, the FTC noted.