The agreement resolves all outstanding FTC litigation and investigations tied to CVS Health’s pharmacy benefit management, pharmacy network contracting and vertical integration practices.
CVS Caremark said it reached a global settlement with the FTC (U.S. antitrust and consumer protection regulator) that resolves all outstanding litigation and investigations involving CVS Health, including issues tied to rebates, pharmacy network contracting and vertical integration. The company said the agreement formalizes and extends changes it has already been making to lower prescription drug costs, improve transparency and shift more savings to patients at the pharmacy counter. Measures include closer alignment of member cost sharing with net drug costs after rebates, moving away from rebate guarantees and spread pricing (keeping the difference between what a payer is charged and a pharmacy is paid), expanded reporting on pricing and broker compensation, a new $25-per-month insulin cap, promotion of point-of-sale rebate passthrough, delinking manufacturer compensation from list prices, acquisition-based reimbursement for independent retail pharmacies, and counting TrumpRx purchases toward deductibles and out-of-pocket maximums where allowed by law. CVS Caremark said it negotiated nearly $80 billion in prescription drug savings for clients and members last year, delivered nearly $900 million in point-of-sale rebate savings to 25 million Americans, and expects estimated savings of $450 million per year for each of the next 10 years through broader point-of-sale rebate adoption and continued innovation.