NCPA CEO Douglas Hoey, in an opinion piece in Chain Drug Review looking ahead to trends in pharmacy in 2025, wrote that NCPA's primary focus will continue to be changing the pharmacy payment model.
"The current model is covert, complex and (intentionally) confusing. It often misaligns the incentives we should have as health care providers—taking care of patients by providing the highest quality of care possible at the most reasonable price," he said.
He said that with the transition to a new administration, it's not clear yet if federal agencies will be friendly to pharmacy or what the administration's health care priorities will be. NCPA will continue educating the agencies, Congress and the White House on the role of community pharmacists in providing accessible, quality health care services.
Hoey also warned employers against deferring to brokers when making decisions related to prescription drug coverage and PBMs, as those middlemen may not pass down savings to employers and don't properly reimburse local pharmacies, creating pharmacy deserts that limit available care for employees.
"Some companies have had lawsuits filed against them by their employees claiming that their PBM caused employees to pay higher costs. We're watching these lawsuits with a close eye, wondering if they might be a wake-up call for those employers who have gotten addicted to rebates that ultimately raise the costs of health care to employees," he says.
You can read Hoey's piece in Chain Drug Review here.
