Panel: Drug Costs Need Transparency, Not Just More Spending

Drug spending in the U.S. keeps climbing, but that growth is not translating into better access for patients, according to a panel at MedCity News' Bullseye event. The disconnect is the core problem: more money flowing through the system does not mean the people who need medicines are getting them.

Panelists tied the dysfunction to a lack of transparency in how drugs are priced and paid for. The prescription supply chain runs through layers of intermediaries, including pharmacy benefit managers, whose rebates and negotiated discounts are largely hidden from patients and often from the plan sponsors paying the bills. That opacity makes it hard to know what a drug actually costs or where the money goes.

The proposed remedy is straightforward in principle: inject transparency into pricing and rebate flows, and redesign benefits so cost savings reach patients at the pharmacy counter. Doing so would help align spending with actual access, rather than letting rising totals mask growing affordability gaps.