Survey Finds Beneficiaries Largely Fault Medicare Law - 08/16/04

A new survey suggests that the number of Medicare beneficiaries with negative views of the new prescription drug law far exceeds the number with positive views. But, it says, beneficiaries want Congress to fix what they see as problems in the law, not repeal it as many Democrats have advocated.

The survey, released on Tuesday by the Kaiser Family Foundation and the Harvard School of Public Health, found that 47 percent of beneficiaries had unfavorable views of the law, while 26 percent had favorable views. The rest said they did not have enough information to offer an opinion... Full Story

Vermont Will Sue U.S. for the Right to Import Drugs - 08/16/04

Vermont will become the first state to sue the federal Food and Drug Administration for rejecting a plan to import prescription drugs from Canada, the state's governor and attorney general said Tuesday.

Reacting to intense pressure to help make prescription drugs more affordable, Vermont officials had asked the drug agency in November to approve a pilot program under which the state would contract with a Canadian company that would take orders from Vermont residents and distribute the drugs by mail...Full Story
 

N.Y. Attorney General Spitzer Sues Express Scripts Over Rx Drug Prices - 08/16/04

ALBANY, N.Y.--New York Attorney General Eliot Spitzer (D) sued pharmacy benefit manager Express Scripts Inc. in state court Aug. 4, alleging the company engaged in a number of fraudulent and deceptive schemes to raise the cost of prescription drugs in the health plan for state employees (New York v. Express Scripts Inc., N.Y. Sup. Ct., No. 4669-04, filed 8/4/04).

Pharmacy benefits giant settles suit for millions Medco case may lead more companies to demand transparency in plan management - 08/16/04

The state Attorney General's Office -- along with counsel from 19 other states -- has settled an unfair trade practices claim with pharmacy benefits manager Medco Healthcare Solutions Inc.

Washington's share of the pot is around $700,000, but experts say the scope of the PBM's work and the number of residents in the state affected is quite large. What's more, the state's Health Care Authority reached it own settlement with Medco last month for $1.6 million... Full Story