{"id":2390029,"date":"2025-01-14T08:59:57","date_gmt":"2025-01-14T13:59:57","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/removing-incentives-to-lower-drug-prices-isnt-pharma-reform\/"},"modified":"2025-01-14T09:01:33","modified_gmt":"2025-01-14T14:01:33","slug":"removing-incentives-to-lower-drug-prices-isnt-pharma-reform","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/removing-incentives-to-lower-drug-prices-isnt-pharma-reform\/","title":{"rendered":"Removing Incentives To Lower Drug Prices Isn&#8217;t Pharma &#8216;Reform&#8217;"},"content":{"rendered":"<aside class=\"mashsb-container mashsb-main mashsb-stretched\"><div class=\"mashsb-box\"><div class=\"mashsb-count mash-medium\" style=\"&quot;\"><div class=\"counts mashsbcount\">18<\/div><span class=\"mashsb-sharetext\">SHARES<\/span><\/div><div class=\"mashsb-buttons\"><a class=\"mashicon-facebook mash-medium mash-nomargin mashsb-noshadow\" href=\"https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/sharer.php?u=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.conservativenewsdaily.net%2Fbreaking-news%2Fremoving-incentives-to-lower-drug-prices-isnt-pharma-reform%2F\" target=\"_top\" rel=\"nofollow\"><span class=\"icon\"><\/span><span class=\"text\">Facebook<\/span><\/a><a class=\"mashicon-twitter mash-medium mash-nomargin mashsb-noshadow\" href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/intent\/tweet?text=&amp;url=https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/?p=2390029&amp;via=ConservNewsDly\" target=\"_top\" rel=\"nofollow\"><span class=\"icon\"><\/span><span class=\"text\">Twitter<\/span><\/a><a class=\"mashicon-subscribe mash-medium mash-nomargin mashsb-noshadow\" href=\"#\" target=\"_top\" rel=\"nofollow\"><span class=\"icon\"><\/span><span class=\"text\">Subscribe<\/span><\/a><div class=\"onoffswitch2 mash-medium mashsb-noshadow\" style=\"display:none\"><\/div><\/div>\n            <\/div>\n                <div style=\"clear:both\"><\/div><\/aside>\n            <!-- Share buttons by mashshare.net - Version: 4.0.47--><p>The article discusses the potential implications of the &#8220;delinking&#8221; legislation related to pharmaceutical pricing and pharmacy benefit managers (PBMs) in the context of a recent omnibus spending bill. It highlights that this bill aimed to <a href=\"https:\/\/amzn.to\/3YuVZYV\">eliminate special interest provisions<\/a>, \u200bincluding\u2064 those \u2062that would\u200c have favored\u2064 the pharmaceutical \u200dindustry at the expense\u200d of consumers. the piece argues that <a href=\"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/not-just-climate-inflation-reduction-act-has-made-major-healthcare-changes-one-year-in\/\" title=\"Inflation Reduction Act brings significant healthcare changes after one year.\">prescription drug\u2062 prices<\/a> have been increasing faster than inflation, with the Pharmaceutical \u2062Research and manufacturers of America (PhRMA) blaming PBMs for high drug costs. <\/p>\n<p>PhRMA&#8217;s proposed legislation seeks \u2062to decouple how PBMs are compensated from the drug prices they negotiate,shifting\u2062 to a flat \u200cfee model rather than a percentage-based system on rebates. This change could disincentivize PBMs from negotiating effectively, leading to higher drug prices and increased\u200c profits \u200bfor pharmaceutical companies. Economic estimates suggest that this delinking could raise \u200cdrug prices by 5-18%, \u200bresulting in\u2063 significant \u2064additional costs \u200dfor Medicare Part D and ultimately burdening\u200c taxpayers and \u200dbeneficiaries with higher premiums. \u2064The article concludes that such legislation could\u2064 harm healthcare consumers while benefiting drug manufacturers.  <\/p>\n<p class=\"readmore\">\n    <button onclick=\"showReadMore()\" id=\"readmorebtn\">Read more&#8230;<\/button>\n<\/p>\n<hr id=\"line\">\n<span id=\"more\"><\/p>\n<div class=\"article-body body-md bdr-top-black pt-30\">\n<div class=\"row justify-content-center\">\n<div class=\"col-12\">\n<figure class=\"article-thumbnail mb-30 mb-sm-60\">\n<div class=\"article-thumbnail-caption d-flex align-items-center justify-content-md-end label-xs mt-15\">         <i class=\"mdi mdi-camera me-10\" aria-hidden=\"true\"><\/i>         <span class=\"visually-hidden\">Image Credit<\/span><a href=\"https:\/\/unsplash.com\/photos\/white-medication-pill-on-orange-plastic-container-5tyMgag0wRo\">James Yarema\/Unsplash<\/a>       <\/div>\n<\/figure><\/div>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<div class=\"article-share text-center article-share-simple\">\n<h5 class=\"label-sm mb-10\">Share<\/h5>\n<ul class=\"article-share-list list-unstyled m-0 p-0\">\n<li class=\"article-share-facebook m-0\">       <a href=\"https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/sharer\/sharer.php?u=https:\/\/thefederalist.com\/2025\/01\/14\/removing-incentives-to-lower-drug-prices-isnt-pharma-reform\/\" target=\"_blank\">         <i class=\"mdi mdi-facebook\" aria-hidden=\"true\"><\/i>         <span class=\"visually-hidden\">Share Article on Facebook<\/span>       <\/a>     <\/li>\n<li class=\"article-share-twitter m-0\">       <a href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/intent\/tweet?text=Removing%20Incentives%20To%20Lower%20Drug%20Prices%20Isn%E2%80%99t%20Pharma%20%E2%80%98Reform%E2%80%99&amp;url=https:\/\/thefederalist.com\/2025\/01\/14\/removing-incentives-to-lower-drug-prices-isnt-pharma-reform\/\" target=\"_blank\">         <i class=\"mdi mdi-twitter\" aria-hidden=\"true\"><\/i>         <span class=\"visually-hidden\">Share Article on Twitter<\/span>       <\/a>     <\/li>\n<li class=\"article-share-truth-social m-0\">       <a href=\"https:\/\/truthsocial.com\/share?title=Removing%20Incentives%20To%20Lower%20Drug%20Prices%20Isn%E2%80%99t%20Pharma%20%E2%80%98Reform%E2%80%99&amp;url=https:\/\/thefederalist.com\/2025\/01\/14\/removing-incentives-to-lower-drug-prices-isnt-pharma-reform\/\" target=\"_blank\">         <svg xmlns=\"http:\/\/www.w3.org\/2000\/svg\" fill=\"currentColor\" style=\"width:36px;height:auto;\" viewbox=\"0 0 92 93\"><path d=\"M69.444 55.716H56.772v10.37h12.672zM64.487 37.795V27.32H38.666v38.664h13.18v-28.19zM21.05 27.321h12.653v10.471H21.051z\" https:><\/path><\/svg>         <span class=\"visually-hidden\">Share Article on Truth Social<\/span>       <\/a>     <\/li>\n<li class=\"article-share-link m-0\">       <button data-clipboard-text=\"https:\/\/thefederalist.com\/2025\/01\/14\/removing-incentives-to-lower-drug-prices-isnt-pharma-reform\/\" data-tooltip-content=\"Copied!\" class=\"clip tooltip\">         <i class=\"mdi mdi-link-variant\" aria-hidden=\"true\"><\/i>         <span class=\"visually-hidden\">Copy Article Link<\/span>       <\/button>     <\/li>\n<li class=\"article-share-email m-0\">       <a href=\"mailto:?subject=Removing%20Incentives%20To%20Lower%20Drug%20Prices%20Isn%E2%80%99t%20Pharma%20%E2%80%98Reform%E2%80%99&amp;body=Delinking%20legislation%20is%20a%20giveaway%20to%20the%20pharmaceutical%20industry%20that%20will%20prove%20costly%20to%20taxpayers%20and%20Part%20D%20enrollees.%20https:\/\/thefederalist.com\/2025\/01\/14\/removing-incentives-to-lower-drug-prices-isnt-pharma-reform\/\" target=\"_blank\">         <i class=\"mdi mdi-email\" aria-hidden=\"true\"><\/i>         <span class=\"visually-hidden\">Share Article via Email<\/span>       <\/a>     <\/li>\n<li class=\"article-share-email m-0\"><span class=\"printfriendly pf-button  pf-alignleft\"><a target=\"_blank\" href=\"http:\/\/thefederalist.com\/#\" rel=\"nofollow\" onclick=\"window.print(); return false;\" title=\"Printer Friendly, PDF &amp; Email\"><span id=\"printfriendly-text2\" class=\"pf-button-text\"><i class=\"mdi mdi-printer\" aria-hidden=\"true\"><\/i><\/span><\/a><\/span><\/li>\n<\/ul><\/div>\n<p>The recent omnibus spending bill, framed as a continuing resolution needed to fund the federal government, was bloated with giveaways to <a href=\"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/dem-gov-hopefuls-side-with-union-in-fight-over-virginia-school-closures\/\" title=\"Dem Gov Hopefuls Side With Union in Fight Over Virginia School Closures\">special interest groups<\/a>. Thanks to Donald Trump and Elon Musk, Congress slashed the continuing resolution from 1,500 pages to 116 and, in the process, eliminated most of the <a href=\"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/nikki-haley-the-left-isnt-looking-out-for-the-little-guy\/\" title=\"NIKKI HALEY: The Left Isn\u2019t Looking Out For The Little Guy\">special interest favors<\/a>. One of the provisions jettisoned was &ldquo;delinking&rdquo; legislation that would have benefited the pharmaceutical industry at the expense of pharmacy benefit managers (PBMs) and, ultimately, <a href=\"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/dont-look-to-california-for-healthcare-reform\/\" title=\"Don\u2019t Look To California For Healthcare Reform\">health care consumers<\/a>.<\/p>\n<p>In the last decade, prescription drug prices have risen faster than inflation. PhRMA, the lobbying group for drugmakers, has persuaded congressional Democrats and Republicans that PBMs are to blame. PBMs negotiate drug prices on behalf of health plan sponsors, which include insurance companies and local, state, and federal government agencies. PBMs are paid a percentage of any rebate they negotiate based on the initial drug price offered by a drugmaker. PhRMA <a href=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/watch?v=yEylt8H-EBo\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">wants<\/a> Congress to pass legislation that &ldquo;delinks&rdquo; the price of the drug from how PBMs are paid when they negotiate drugs for Medicare Part D plans. Instead, PBMs would only be able to charge a flat fee to insurers.&nbsp;<\/p>\n<div class=\"fdrlst__b89e9-paragraph-2 d-flex justify-content-center\" style=\"margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center; \" id=\"fdrlst__b89e9-1879277407\">\n<div id=\"div-gpt-ad-1463670073398-0\" class=\"mb-30\"><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<p>It&rsquo;s not hard to see why PhRMA wants this. Imagine a hypothetical ACME Corporation that offers a product at a starting price of $1 million. Then imagine a company that wants to buy the product and is considering sending one of two negotiators to bargain on the price. Negotiator A is paid 25 percent of any rebate he negotiates, while Negotiator B is paid a flat salary regardless of how much of a rebate he gets. You don&rsquo;t have to be a finance whiz to know that ACME Corporation would much rather deal with Negotiator B.<\/p>\n<p>If delinking legislation becomes law, PBMs will have less incentive to negotiate rebates. That means high drug prices and larger coffers for pharmaceutical companies. Economist Casey Mulligan <a href=\"https:\/\/bfi.uchicago.edu\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/09\/BFI_WP_2023-124.pdf\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">estimates<\/a> that delinking legislation would increase drug prices between 5 and 18 percent. <a href=\"https:\/\/getmga.com\/the-economics-of-delinking-pbm-compensation\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">According<\/a> to Matrix Global Advisors, drugmakers&rsquo; bottom lines would improve by up to $32 billion.<\/p>\n<p>Mulligan estimates that rising drug prices could raise costs for Part D as high as $13 billion annually. Matrix Global Advisor claims it could be up to nearly $27 billion. Taxpayers would pick up about three-quarters of that cost, with Medicare beneficiaries making up the difference in higher premiums.<\/p>\n<p>Unfortunately, delinking legislation will soon return, as members of both parties support it, including powerful Republicans like Rep. James Comer, chair of the House Oversight Committee, and incoming chair of the Senate Judiciary Committee, Sen. Chuck Grassley. And it is likely to become law as it also has the support of Donald Trump. &ldquo;We&rsquo;re going to knock out the middleman,&rdquo; Trump said recently, referring to PBMs.&nbsp;<\/p>\n<p>On this issue, Trump is getting bum advice. Delinking legislation is a product of the D.C. swamp. It is a giveaway to the pharmaceutical industry that will prove costly to taxpayers and Part D enrollees. It will benefit politicians who will receive campaign contributions not only from grateful drug companies but also from PBMs who will come seeking their own special favors. It will result in hundreds, if not thousands, of pages of new regulations, and enforcing those regulations will require hiring more bureaucrats.&nbsp;<\/p>\n<p>Trump often extols the virtues of draining the swamp. One of his advisers should let him know that delinking legislation amounts to filling it back up.<\/p>\n<hr class=\"wp-block-separator\">\n<div class=\"article-author-description fst-italic\">      David Hogberg is a writer living in Washington, D.C. He is author of the book <a href=\"\/\/www.amazon.com\/Medicares-Victims-Governments-Patients-Physicians\/dp\/0692415327%E2%80%9C\">Medicare&#8217;s Victims: How the U.S. Government&#8217;s Largest Health Care Program Harms Patients and Impairs Physicians.<\/a><\/div>\n<div class=\"article-author mt-30 mt-sm-60 pt-30 bdr-top-bold-black\">\n<div class=\"row g-0 align-items-center\">\n<div class=\"col-12 col-md-6\">\n<div class=\"article-author-profile d-flex align-items-center justify-content-center justify-content-md-start\">\n<div class=\"article-author-details\">\n<div class=\"label-md\">David Hogberg<\/div>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<div class=\"col-12 col-md-6 d-flex justify-content-center justify-content-md-end mt-15 mt-md-0\">        <a href=\"https:\/\/thefederalist.com\/author\/dhogberg\/\" class=\"btn btn-black btn-small\">More Articles<\/a>     <\/div>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<div class=\"article-tags bdr-top-black mt-30 mt-sm-60 pt-15 pt-md-45\">\n<ul class=\"list-unstyled d-flex flex-wrap align-items-center mb-0 mx-n10 p-0\">\n<li class=\"mt-10 mx-10\"><a href=\"https:\/\/thefederalist.com\/tag\/congress\/\" class=\"btn btn-black btn-small\">Congress<\/a><\/li>\n<li class=\"mt-10 mx-10\"><a href=\"https:\/\/thefederalist.com\/tag\/delinking\/\" class=\"btn btn-black btn-small\">delinking<\/a><\/li>\n<li class=\"mt-10 mx-10\"><a href=\"https:\/\/thefederalist.com\/tag\/donald-trump\/\" class=\"btn btn-black btn-small\">Donald Trump<\/a><\/li>\n<li class=\"mt-10 mx-10\"><a href=\"https:\/\/thefederalist.com\/tag\/drugs\/\" class=\"btn btn-black btn-small\">drugs<\/a><\/li>\n<li class=\"mt-10 mx-10\"><a href=\"https:\/\/thefederalist.com\/tag\/health-insurance\/\" class=\"btn btn-black btn-small\">health insurance<\/a><\/li>\n<li class=\"mt-10 mx-10\"><a href=\"https:\/\/thefederalist.com\/tag\/pbms\/\" class=\"btn btn-black btn-small\">PBMs<\/a><\/li>\n<li class=\"mt-10 mx-10\"><a href=\"https:\/\/thefederalist.com\/tag\/pharma\/\" class=\"btn btn-black btn-small\">pharma<\/a><\/li>\n<li class=\"mt-10 mx-10\"><a href=\"https:\/\/thefederalist.com\/tag\/pharmaceutical-companies\/\" class=\"btn btn-black btn-small\">pharmaceutical companies<\/a><\/li>\n<li class=\"mt-10 mx-10\"><a href=\"https:\/\/thefederalist.com\/tag\/pharmaceutical-drugs\/\" class=\"btn btn-black btn-small\">pharmaceutical drugs<\/a><\/li>\n<li class=\"mt-10 mx-10\"><a href=\"https:\/\/thefederalist.com\/tag\/pharmaceutical-industry\/\" class=\"btn btn-black btn-small\">pharmaceutical industry<\/a><\/li>\n<li class=\"mt-10 mx-10\"><a href=\"https:\/\/thefederalist.com\/tag\/pharmaceutical-lobby\/\" class=\"btn btn-black btn-small\">pharmaceutical lobby<\/a><\/li>\n<li class=\"mt-10 mx-10\"><a href=\"https:\/\/thefederalist.com\/tag\/phrma\/\" class=\"btn btn-black btn-small\">PhRMA<\/a><\/li>\n<\/ul><\/div>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<p><\/span><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>The recent omnibus spending bill, presented as a necessary funding measure for the federal government, was filled with benefits for special interest groups. Thanks to Donald Trump and Elon Musk, Congress reduced the bill from 1,500 pages to 116, removing many of these favors. One discarded provision was &#8220;delinking&#8221; legislation that would have favored the pharmaceutical industry over pharmacy benefit managers (PBMs) and healthcare consumers<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1217,"featured_media":2390030,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_mo_disable_npp":"","fifu_image_url":"https:\/\/thefederalist.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/01\/White-Pill-on-Orange-Container.jpg","fifu_image_alt":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[546],"tags":[48469,37167,48470,48471],"class_list":["post-2390029","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-the-federalist","tag-drug-prices","tag-healthcare-policy","tag-pharma-reform","tag-pharmaceutical-industry"],"fifu_image_url":"https:\/\/thefederalist.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/01\/White-Pill-on-Orange-Container.jpg","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2390029","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1217"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=2390029"}],"version-history":[{"count":3,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2390029\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":2390033,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2390029\/revisions\/2390033"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/2390030"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=2390029"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=2390029"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=2390029"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}