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In the News
Chronically ill patients facing a lack of insurance coverage — by law
Capitol Weekly | December 29, 2022
Managing autoimmune arthritis that causes painful, swollen joints and daily fatigue is almost like having a full-time job. The medication I need to prevent further joint damage also suppresses my immune system, which means running through PTO (paid time off) for sick days instead of fun days. Regardless, biologic medications allow me to function and keep my hands from swelling like balloons. Living with chronic illness is taxing enough without having to decode insurance hurdles to receive these life-altering medications.
Accumulators And Maximizers: A New Front In The Battle Over Drug Costs
Health Affairs | November 22, 2022
The high cost of brand-name medications is one of the critical issues in US health care. The past two decades have witnessed ever-higher launch prices for new drugs, accompanied by substantial annual increases in those drugs during their patent-protected market exclusivity periods. These trends have been especially pronounced for so-called specialty medications, expensive products that are often infused or used to treat conditions such as cancer or human immunodeficiency virus infections. Drug prices in the US are far higher than in other comparable industrialized countries because manufacturers can freely establish prices for US patients. Manufacturers argue that prices reflect high research and development expenses for medications and the substantial risk of failure, particularly for early-stage products.
Tackling cancer while battling the insurance system
Washington Post | September 9, 2022
When you take up residency in Cancerland, as I did when I was diagnosed with Stage 4 lung cancer in 2020, you regularly hear yourself described as “battling” cancer. With my one-pill-a-day biomarker-directed therapy, I prefer to say that I’m “tackling” cancer. But if I am at war, it’s with an insurance system that works more like an extortion scheme.
Congress should shield patients from deceptive policies that increase their medication costs
The Hill | June 3, 2022
Even before the pandemic upended life as we know it, patients were struggling to afford many of their medications. Now, as Americans feel the direct effects of inflation at the gas pump, grocery store and at home, copay assistance for expensive medications has become even more critical. Despite the challenging economic circumstances facing the average American, health plans and industry middlemen known as pharmacy benefit managers (PBMs) increasingly turn their backs on patients by essentially refusing the use of copay assistance. Blocking copay assistance from counting toward a patient’s deductible leaves many of the country’s most vulnerable patients with an impossible choice to either shell out more money for their medicine or forgo treatment altogether.