ICYMI: Coverage of expensive drugs tops patients’ concerns
A news story highlights the growing concern among patients and insurance commissioners about high cost-sharing for medicines in health insurance exchanges.
A news story highlights the growing concern among patients and insurance commissioners about high cost-sharing for medicines in health insurance exchanges.
A new story from the AP today, “Patient advocates say insurers avoiding the sick,” highlights the growing concern among patients and insurance commissioners about high cost-sharing for medicines in the new health insurance exchanges. “Ending insurance discrimination against the sick was a central goal of the nation's health care overhaul, but leading patient groups say that promise is being undermined by new barriers from insurers,” the article states.
The article highlights a letter 333 patient groups recently sent to HHS raising concerns about patients’ access to medicines. “We are increasingly aware of evidence that new enrollees, especially those with chronic health conditions, are still facing barriers to care,” they wrote. The letter highlights a number of ways patients’ access to medicines is being restricted, including “discriminatory benefit designs that limit access, such as restrictive formularies and inadequate provider networks; high cost-sharing; and a lack of plan transparency that may deprive consumers of information that is essential to making informed enrollment choices.” The letter notes that “some plans are placing extremely high co-insurance on lifesaving medications, and putting all or most medications in a given class, including generics, on the highest cost tier. This creates an undue burden on enrollees who rely on these medications.”
Additional highlights from the AP story: