By David Lazarus
Los Angeles Times, October 7, 2011

Beginning Jan. 1, Walgreens will no longer fill prescriptions for Anthem Blue Cross members, meaning that they’ll have to switch to another drugstore if they want their insurance to keep covering their meds.

In this case, though, it’s not the insurance giant calling the shots. Instead, it’s Anthem’s pharmacy benefit manager, a St. Louis company called Express Scripts Inc.

The dispute between Walgreens and Express Scripts highlights how consumers can find their healthcare choices limited by the money-minded business decisions of big corporations.

(Express Scripts) is spending about $29 billion to acquire rival Medco Health Solutions Inc. If the deal passes regulatory muster, it would give Express Scripts control over about a third of the market for pharmacy benefits. Nearly 4 billion prescriptions are dispensed in the U.S. annually.

Obviously steps should be taken to keep medical costs down. Both Express Scripts and Walgreen say that’s what they’re trying to do.

But it’s hard not to think all we’re really seeing here is two large, profit-hungry corporate behemoths fighting over as much of our healthcare dollars as they can get their hands on.

Inevitably, prices will go up for consumers and choices will be further limited.

http://www.latimes.com/business/la-fi-lazarus-20111007,0,2128189,full.column

Comment:

By Don McCanne, MD

Congress turned the Medicare prescription business over to private pharmacy benefit managers under the fiction that they would increase choices and reduce costs. What did we get? Reduced choices in drugs covered, reduced choices in pharmacies, and prices much higher than the government obtains for the Medicaid and the VA drug programs. It’s only going to get worse, unless we finally decide that we’re ready to take over the financing of health care in America by establishing our own public insurance program.

Walgreen battle over drug prices will limit consumer choice

By David Lazarus
Los Angeles Times, October 7, 2011

Beginning Jan. 1, Walgreens will no longer fill prescriptions for Anthem Blue Cross members, meaning that they’ll have to switch to another drugstore if they want their insurance to keep covering their meds.

In this case, though, it’s not the insurance giant calling the shots. Instead, it’s Anthem’s pharmacy benefit manager, a St. Louis company called Express Scripts Inc.

The dispute between Walgreens and Express Scripts highlights how consumers can find their healthcare choices limited by the money-minded business decisions of big corporations.

(Express Scripts) is spending about $29 billion to acquire rival Medco Health Solutions Inc. If the deal passes regulatory muster, it would give Express Scripts control over about a third of the market for pharmacy benefits. Nearly 4 billion prescriptions are dispensed in the U.S. annually.

Obviously steps should be taken to keep medical costs down. Both Express Scripts and Walgreen say that’s what they’re trying to do.

But it’s hard not to think all we’re really seeing here is two large, profit-hungry corporate behemoths fighting over as much of our healthcare dollars as they can get their hands on.

Inevitably, prices will go up for consumers and choices will be further limited.

http://www.latimes.com/business/la-fi-lazarus-20111007,0,2128189,full.column

Congress turned the Medicare prescription business over to private pharmacy benefit managers under the fiction that they would increase choices and reduce costs. What did we get? Reduced choices in drugs covered, reduced choices in pharmacies, and prices much higher than the government obtains for the Medicaid and the VA drug programs. It’s only going to get worse, unless we finally decide that we’re ready to take over the financing of health care in America by establishing our own public insurance program.