Ann Marie Buerkle, former nurse and congresswoman who served as a commissioner and acting chairwoman of the Consumer Product Safety Commission during President Trump’s first term, explained in a new op-ed published in The Blaze, why Big Pharma continues to go after pharmacy benefit managers (PBMs)…and spoiler alert: It isn’t to help patients. The former Congresswoman writes:
“Every rebate, every discount, and every dollar saved means less profit for drugmakers. That’s the whole fight…Pharmaceutical companies have spent years trying to convince the public and policymakers that PBMs are the bad guys in the prescription supply chain, shadowy middlemen inflating prices and hurting innovation. That narrative is convenient, but it is also wrong. PBMs are introducing competition, eliminating waste, and driving down prices. Which is precisely why Big Pharma wants them out of the way.”
The millions of dollars in lobbying and additional billions spent on advertising isn’t to help patients, but pad the pockets of drug companies and deflect blame:
“The pharmaceutical industry spends more money than any other sector to sway government policy. In 2024, it poured $90 million into campaign contributions and nearly $400 million into lobbying — much of it through former government officials now on the payroll. Drugmakers also shelled out a whopping $11 billion on advertising, a sum that conveniently buys more than consumer attention. It pressures media outlets to look the other way, a racket the Trump administration is finally moving to rein in.”
To undermine the Administration’s concerted efforts to finally hold drug companies accountable, Big Pharma is pushing lawmakers to focus their efforts on PBMs. In reality, PBMs are free market forces in the prescription drug supply chain who act as a critical counterbalance to Big Pharma’s profit-over-patient pricing schemes notes Buerkle:
“A recent study shows pharmacy benefit managers deliver at least $145 billion in net value every year, even after costs. Compared with a system where manufacturers dictate prices, PBMs create an additional $192 billion in value across the economy. That money doesn’t vanish into corporate coffers. It flows back into businesses, households, and the wallets of working Americans. PBMs accomplish this by negotiating directly with manufacturers and pharmacies … That is a competitive market in action…
“The truth is that PBMs are effective. And that is exactly why drugmakers are going after them. PBMs bring down net prices and demand accountability. That cuts into Big Pharma’s profit margins. So the industry has launched a campaign to reframe PBMs as a problem rather than a solution.
“When the most powerful industry in America is desperate to kill them off, you don’t need a think tank study to see what’s at stake. That fact alone tells you everything you need to know.”
Read the full op-ed in The Blaze HERE.
See why Congress should instead hold Big Pharma accountable HERE.
