Richard Kirby
@richardkirbyal.bsky.social
Director of Communications at American Pharmacy Cooperative, Inc. Loves independent pharmacies, loathes the Big 3 PBMs with the burning hatred of a billion suns. More sarcasm than is generally warranted. Fan of AU sports, steak frites, and Douglas Adams.
Pinned
Richard Kirby
@richardkirbyal.bsky.social
· Nov 25
The Opaque Industry Secretly Inflating Prices for Prescription Drugs (Gift Article)
Pharmacy benefit managers are driving up drug costs for millions of people, employers and the government.
www.nytimes.com
I post a lot about pharmacy benefit managers, multi-billion-dollar middlemen in the U.S. Rx drug chain that are a major reason prescription drugs cost so much in America.
Here's a great explainer on how PBMs artificially inflate the cost of prescriptions:
www.nytimes.com/2024/06/21/b...
Here's a great explainer on how PBMs artificially inflate the cost of prescriptions:
www.nytimes.com/2024/06/21/b...
Alabama residents: Call your legislators and urge them to pass #PBMReform in the state! affordablemedsal.com
February 17, 2025 at 10:07 PM
Alabama residents: Call your legislators and urge them to pass #PBMReform in the state! affordablemedsal.com
Medicare drug price negotiations are "structured in a way that will force many independent pharmacies out of the Medicare Part D program. Drug costs may come down, but there will be a shortage of pharmacies to dispense medicine.”
Medicare Drug Price Negotiations Expose Community Pharmacies to Financial Risk
A survey conducted by 3 Axis Advisors revealed potential impacts of the Inflation Reduction Act’s Medicare Drug Price Negotiation Program.
www.drugtopics.com
January 31, 2025 at 3:50 PM
Medicare drug price negotiations are "structured in a way that will force many independent pharmacies out of the Medicare Part D program. Drug costs may come down, but there will be a shortage of pharmacies to dispense medicine.”
“We should all be very concerned about the activities of #PBM middlemen... These are the people who are supposedly getting discounts for us on drug prices but then actually pocket those discounts.”
Pressure Mounts for PBM Reform Amid Rising Drug Costs
Pharmacy Benefit Managers (PBMs) have long operated in the shadows of the U.S. healthcare system, wielding significant influence over drug pricing and access. Recent developments, including federal in...
ivn.us
January 30, 2025 at 4:04 PM
“We should all be very concerned about the activities of #PBM middlemen... These are the people who are supposedly getting discounts for us on drug prices but then actually pocket those discounts.”
#PBMs have blocked—and continue to block—this promise of biosimilars because they prioritize their own profits over the well-being of patients.
Reform PBMs and Deliver Lower-Cost Drugs for Patients | Opinion
Congress must build on the reforms drafted in 2024 that require PBM transparency.
www.newsweek.com
January 27, 2025 at 4:12 PM
#PBMs have blocked—and continue to block—this promise of biosimilars because they prioritize their own profits over the well-being of patients.
“We know #PBMs are crushing pharmacies, forcing people to use mail-order prescriptions and other practices around reimbursements.”
sfstandard.com/2025/01/23/s...
sfstandard.com/2025/01/23/s...
Deserted: 65K San Franciscans to be left without a local pharmacy
Residents of the Bayview and Ingleside won't have a pharmacy in their neighborhoods after 12 Walgreens stores close in February.
sfstandard.com
January 24, 2025 at 10:31 PM
“We know #PBMs are crushing pharmacies, forcing people to use mail-order prescriptions and other practices around reimbursements.”
sfstandard.com/2025/01/23/s...
sfstandard.com/2025/01/23/s...
Reposted by Richard Kirby
Thread…
$7B marking up **generic** drugs.
PBMs are the middleman companies that decide what drugs your insurance covers and how much you pay for them.
And which pharmacies you have to use — in many of these cases, pharmacies they *own*
It's wild. Wanna unpack?
PBMs are the middleman companies that decide what drugs your insurance covers and how much you pay for them.
And which pharmacies you have to use — in many of these cases, pharmacies they *own*
It's wild. Wanna unpack?
Pharmacy benefit managers made more than $7B marking up generic specialty drugs: FTC www.axios.com/2025/01/14/p...
January 23, 2025 at 7:47 PM
Thread…
The Big 3 #PBMs’ affiliated pharmacies generated over $7.3 billion of dispensing revenue in excess of their estimated acquisition cost, as measured by the NADAC, on specialty generic drugs over the study period.
FTC Releases Second Interim Staff Report on Prescription Drug Middlemen
The Federal Trade Commission today published a second interim staff report on the prescription drug middleman industry, which focuses on pharmacy benefit managers’ (PBMs) influence over specialty g
www.ftc.gov
January 14, 2025 at 10:35 PM
The Big 3 #PBMs’ affiliated pharmacies generated over $7.3 billion of dispensing revenue in excess of their estimated acquisition cost, as measured by the NADAC, on specialty generic drugs over the study period.
Excited for today's pre-release event of the Modern Medical Maifa docu-series! Learn more at www.modernmedicalmafia.com
www.youtube.com/watch?v=cMMn...
www.youtube.com/watch?v=cMMn...
Modern Medical Mafia Sizzle Short Film
YouTube video by Patient Protector
www.youtube.com
January 10, 2025 at 2:53 PM
Excited for today's pre-release event of the Modern Medical Maifa docu-series! Learn more at www.modernmedicalmafia.com
www.youtube.com/watch?v=cMMn...
www.youtube.com/watch?v=cMMn...
Reposted by Richard Kirby
The biggest reason U.S. drug prices far exceed international peers: our addiction to ‘discounts’
“For PBMs paid based on discounts negotiated, a high retail price with big discounts is better than a low retail price with no discounts.”
“For PBMs paid based on discounts negotiated, a high retail price with big discounts is better than a low retail price with no discounts.”
Employers take fights with Big Pharma and PBMs over insulin price-gouging charges to one federal court
A lawyer for the employers predicts that discovery will show that collusion between drugmakers and PBMs had a significant impact on his clients' costs.
www.benefitspro.com
January 5, 2025 at 6:20 PM
The biggest reason U.S. drug prices far exceed international peers: our addiction to ‘discounts’
“For PBMs paid based on discounts negotiated, a high retail price with big discounts is better than a low retail price with no discounts.”
“For PBMs paid based on discounts negotiated, a high retail price with big discounts is better than a low retail price with no discounts.”
Meaningful #PBM reform at the federal level is SO CLOSE to becoming a reality! Contact your representatives in Congress TODAY and urge them to include PBM reform in the year-end financial package!
Unsure of who your representatives are? Find them here: ow.ly/8lqg50UtxCM
Unsure of who your representatives are? Find them here: ow.ly/8lqg50UtxCM
December 18, 2024 at 8:29 PM
Meaningful #PBM reform at the federal level is SO CLOSE to becoming a reality! Contact your representatives in Congress TODAY and urge them to include PBM reform in the year-end financial package!
Unsure of who your representatives are? Find them here: ow.ly/8lqg50UtxCM
Unsure of who your representatives are? Find them here: ow.ly/8lqg50UtxCM
So, not only do the Big 3 #PBMs increase prescription prices for patients and taxpayers, they took rebates (you can call them "kickbacks") and helped worsen the opioid crisis.
www.nytimes.com/2024/12/17/b...
www.nytimes.com/2024/12/17/b...
Drugmakers Paid PBMs Not to Restrict Opioid Prescriptions
Drugmakers including Purdue Pharma paid pharmacy benefit managers not to restrict painkiller prescriptions, a New York Times investigation found.
www.nytimes.com
December 17, 2024 at 3:30 PM
So, not only do the Big 3 #PBMs increase prescription prices for patients and taxpayers, they took rebates (you can call them "kickbacks") and helped worsen the opioid crisis.
www.nytimes.com/2024/12/17/b...
www.nytimes.com/2024/12/17/b...
Congress is currently considering adding partial #PBM reform to its end-of-year financial package. This is a great explainer on what PBMs are and what they do, not only for journalists but for anyone interested in the subject.
journalistsresource.org/home/pharmac...
journalistsresource.org/home/pharmac...
Pharmacy benefit managers: What journalists need to know
Pharmacy benefit managers, created to negotiate better deals for consumers on medicines, instead have sometimes driven up drug prices.
journalistsresource.org
December 17, 2024 at 3:25 PM
Congress is currently considering adding partial #PBM reform to its end-of-year financial package. This is a great explainer on what PBMs are and what they do, not only for journalists but for anyone interested in the subject.
journalistsresource.org/home/pharmac...
journalistsresource.org/home/pharmac...
#PBMs shouldn't own pharmacies. Period.
Read about the Patients Before Monopolies (PBM) Act here: ow.ly/fsc050Uqeou
Read about the Patients Before Monopolies (PBM) Act here: ow.ly/fsc050Uqeou
December 12, 2024 at 9:05 PM
#PBMs shouldn't own pharmacies. Period.
Read about the Patients Before Monopolies (PBM) Act here: ow.ly/fsc050Uqeou
Read about the Patients Before Monopolies (PBM) Act here: ow.ly/fsc050Uqeou
Tired: Spotify Wrapped
Wired: Lawmakers' 2024 Greatest Hits on #PBM Reform
Check it out here: bit.ly/pbm-greatest...
Wired: Lawmakers' 2024 Greatest Hits on #PBM Reform
Check it out here: bit.ly/pbm-greatest...
December 10, 2024 at 8:06 PM
Tired: Spotify Wrapped
Wired: Lawmakers' 2024 Greatest Hits on #PBM Reform
Check it out here: bit.ly/pbm-greatest...
Wired: Lawmakers' 2024 Greatest Hits on #PBM Reform
Check it out here: bit.ly/pbm-greatest...
Wonky as hell and chock-full of numbers, but if you want to learn exactly how broken America's prescription drug system is, follow @aciaccia.bsky.social, 46 Brooklyn, and 3 Axis Advisors.
Medicare Part D: Where you pay a premium for your health insurance and (often) a premium for your medicines too.
Our latest on Medicare’s drug pricing casino: www.46brooklyn.com/research/121...
Our latest on Medicare’s drug pricing casino: www.46brooklyn.com/research/121...
Same drug, thousands of prices: Crossing Medicare’s Catastrophic Coverage finish line — 46brooklyn Research
Opening Ceremony Back in August 2020, we composed a piece titled, “ The Flawed Design of Medicare Part D: A Copaxone Case Study ,“ which explored some of the perverse incentives driving coverage deci...
www.46brooklyn.com
December 10, 2024 at 8:04 PM
Wonky as hell and chock-full of numbers, but if you want to learn exactly how broken America's prescription drug system is, follow @aciaccia.bsky.social, 46 Brooklyn, and 3 Axis Advisors.
Reposted by Richard Kirby
Optimist: The cup is half full
Pessimist: The cup is half empty
Pharmacist: This refill is too early, your insurance denied the claim.
Pessimist: The cup is half empty
Pharmacist: This refill is too early, your insurance denied the claim.
Optimist: the cup is half full
Pessimist: the cup is half empty
Mircobiologist: the cup is full. Just look at what grew on this plate when wd swabbed the inside of the cup and the sequences we recovered from the filtered air.
🧪🧫
Pessimist: the cup is half empty
Mircobiologist: the cup is full. Just look at what grew on this plate when wd swabbed the inside of the cup and the sequences we recovered from the filtered air.
🧪🧫
Optimist: the cup is half full
Pessimist: the cup is half empty
Semanticist: the cup is half full iff the cup is half empty
#linguistics 🐦🐦
Pessimist: the cup is half empty
Semanticist: the cup is half full iff the cup is half empty
#linguistics 🐦🐦
November 24, 2024 at 2:44 AM
Optimist: The cup is half full
Pessimist: The cup is half empty
Pharmacist: This refill is too early, your insurance denied the claim.
Pessimist: The cup is half empty
Pharmacist: This refill is too early, your insurance denied the claim.
I post a lot about pharmacy benefit managers, multi-billion-dollar middlemen in the U.S. Rx drug chain that are a major reason prescription drugs cost so much in America.
Here's a great explainer on how PBMs artificially inflate the cost of prescriptions:
www.nytimes.com/2024/06/21/b...
Here's a great explainer on how PBMs artificially inflate the cost of prescriptions:
www.nytimes.com/2024/06/21/b...
The Opaque Industry Secretly Inflating Prices for Prescription Drugs (Gift Article)
Pharmacy benefit managers are driving up drug costs for millions of people, employers and the government.
www.nytimes.com
November 25, 2024 at 6:01 PM
I post a lot about pharmacy benefit managers, multi-billion-dollar middlemen in the U.S. Rx drug chain that are a major reason prescription drugs cost so much in America.
Here's a great explainer on how PBMs artificially inflate the cost of prescriptions:
www.nytimes.com/2024/06/21/b...
Here's a great explainer on how PBMs artificially inflate the cost of prescriptions:
www.nytimes.com/2024/06/21/b...
People of Bluesky. Let's get to know each other better. What is your all-time favorite TV show? Quote share your answer in gif form.
November 25, 2024 at 5:53 PM
People of Bluesky. Let's get to know each other better. What is your all-time favorite TV show? Quote share your answer in gif form.
Reviewing some #pharmacy posts on here today and after reading them, I thought I would add this PSA:
Locally-owned independent pharmacy > any of the chains.
Even if they can't accept your insurance, ask for a cash price. It may well be lower than your copay.
Locally-owned independent pharmacy > any of the chains.
Even if they can't accept your insurance, ask for a cash price. It may well be lower than your copay.
November 21, 2024 at 10:58 PM
Reviewing some #pharmacy posts on here today and after reading them, I thought I would add this PSA:
Locally-owned independent pharmacy > any of the chains.
Even if they can't accept your insurance, ask for a cash price. It may well be lower than your copay.
Locally-owned independent pharmacy > any of the chains.
Even if they can't accept your insurance, ask for a cash price. It may well be lower than your copay.
This is a great video, because it includes an explainer on pharmacy benefit managers, and a discussion of a fix to what ails the US prescription drug system - the Pharmacists Fight Back Act. Worth a watch!
NEW: There's a crime wave at CVS, but you're being lied to about who's behind it.
The company is under-staffing, underpaying, and forcing pharmacists to chase money at the expense of patient safety.
“I’m afraid I’m going to kill someone,” said one pharmacist.
www.youtube.com/watch?v=woAC...
The company is under-staffing, underpaying, and forcing pharmacists to chase money at the expense of patient safety.
“I’m afraid I’m going to kill someone,” said one pharmacist.
www.youtube.com/watch?v=woAC...
Why CVS Sucks Now — And Is Getting Worse
YouTube video by More Perfect Union
www.youtube.com
November 21, 2024 at 10:51 PM
This is a great video, because it includes an explainer on pharmacy benefit managers, and a discussion of a fix to what ails the US prescription drug system - the Pharmacists Fight Back Act. Worth a watch!
As of this morning, 48 Representatives have signed on to HR 9096 - the Pharmacists Fight Back Act! Our goal of having 50 reps signed on by Thanksgiving is in sight! Click the link below to learn more and urge your representative to cosponsor this important bill!
bit.ly/pharmacists-...
bit.ly/pharmacists-...
November 21, 2024 at 10:42 PM
As of this morning, 48 Representatives have signed on to HR 9096 - the Pharmacists Fight Back Act! Our goal of having 50 reps signed on by Thanksgiving is in sight! Click the link below to learn more and urge your representative to cosponsor this important bill!
bit.ly/pharmacists-...
bit.ly/pharmacists-...
Welp, let's see what this is like.
November 19, 2024 at 11:17 PM
Welp, let's see what this is like.