HARRISBURG (100.1 FM and AM 1020 KDKA) — Representative Valerie Gaydos (Allegheny) brought forth a potential bill Thursday that would allow health clinics to share cheaper prescription information, greater transparency, and broader alternatives for on-site patients.
Gaydos is hoping that allowing for flexibility at the facilities would decrease prescription abandonment that occurs across the commonwealth.
House Bill 882 would like to change the “transparency in benefits, eligibility, and costs for prescription drugs by requiring health plans and pharmacy benefit managers (PBM) to share certain information with enrollees and health care providers upon request.”
Gaydos cites prescription abandonment for patients simply not taking medication.
If that’s the case, then people with chronic ailments are often going untreated.
“Prescription drug abandonment is a growing concern in the medical community and is a leading cause of drug nonadherence,” said Gaydos.
“According to the National Institutes of Health, medication nonadherence for patients with chronic diseases is extremely common, affecting as many as 40% to 50% of patients who are prescribed medications for the management of chronic conditions such as diabetes or hypertension. This nonadherence to prescribed treatment is thought to cause at least 100,000 preventable deaths and $100 billion in preventable medical costs per year.”
HB 882 would allow visiting patients to discuss information with their doctors more readily and find methods best suited for their needs, bringing direct costs to the front line of the issue.
Gaydos spoke on her beliefs on why so many prescriptions go unfilled, and it boils down to the out-of-pocket price tag, mostly.
Gaydos also mentioned the uncertainty factor of the costs of a prescription pickup.
Many patients don’t know how much it will ultimately cost to receive the prescription drugs.
So knowing and not knowing are the biggest contributors to prescription nonadherence: already knowing that the price is too high and not knowing whether the price will be low enough — two paths that converge at the intersection of the same issue.
And it's the issue that Gaydos thinks the new bill could improve.
“A recent survey of 1,000 patients revealed that 75% received a prescription that cost more than expected, and half did not pick up a prescription because the expense was too high when they arrived at the pharmacy,” stated Gaydos.
“Statistics revealed this problem could be solved if the provider had access to prescription costs as they were prescribing the medication and the patient could know the cost and availability of the prescription prior to leaving the office.”
HB 882 is now in the hands of the House Health Committee for further consideration.