Kurt Caudill:
Association member health plans share the goal of the bill authors in making prescription drugs more affordable for Wisconsin patients. Drug prices set by pharmaceutical manufacturers are often excessive and unreasonable, and prescription drugs constitute a significant and fast-rising portion of total health care spending. However, this proposal will not reduce this trend. SB 203, through its prohibition of so-called copay accumulator programs, constitutes state endorsement of the bait and switch marketing strategies used by pharmaceutical companies to induce customers to use more expensive branded drugs. Specifically, this legislation purports to save patients money by prohibiting insurers from managing the total cost of prescription drugs through copay accumulator programs. Drug manufacturers offer cost sharing assistance, often in the form of copay coupons, and represent this assistance as being designed to lower the cost of a prescription drug. The reality, however, is that these programs are anti-competitive marketing tools used to drive sales of brand-name drugs. Copay coupons obscure a drug's true cost, incentivize the use of high-cost drugs, and make pharmaceutical manufacturers less accountable for both their prices and price increases, ultimately leading to increased costs for all members of a health coverage plan. SB 203 would restrict the use of a tool health plans may employ to better manage total drug costs for plan participants and undermines health plan efforts to negotiate lower prices for patients. Imposing mandates on health plan benefit design does not address the root problem of the high prices set by the drug manufacturers. Barring the use of copay accumulator programs will increase health care costs for all consumers by limiting the downward market pressure these programs have on the price of prescription drugs.