Health Insurance Daily

Companies Struggle For Pharmacy Cost Reprieve

Benefit managers favor cost-shifting, mail-order drugs and patient education as remedies for soaring drug bills, according to a recent survey of 100 HR professionals by Arxcel, a pharmacy benefit manager.

For reducing pharmacy costs, 70% of HR professionals deemed additional cost-shifting the most viable solution, and an equal number voiced the same sentiment about providing incentives to use mail-order services. Another 66% considered patient education about cost-effective medicine use the most viable option.

Pinpointing the primary driver of increasing pharmacy costs, 30% of respondents cited direct-to-consumer advertising, while 29% blamed the expense of developing new drugs. Another 20% blamed inflation, while 16% pointed to the aging of the U.S. population.

To read this article in its entirety click on Benefit News.

posted by Mike @ 7:50 AM