Weekly Policy Update: Trump Administration Pulls Rebate Rule
By: Colorado BioScience Association Date: 07/15/2019
Last week the Trump Administration withdrew their proposed rebate rule that would have required manufacturer rebates to be passed through to patients in Part D and other government programs.
The proposed regulation would have ended the safe harbor protections for rebates paid by manufacturers to PBMs, which are currently permitted under a safe harbor written into the Social Security Act’s Anti-Kickback Statute. If the rule had been implemented, it had the potential to ensure patients benefit directly from discounts and to fix the often misaligned incentives in our current health care system.
We were disappointed by the announcement, as CBSA has been supportive of rebate pass through policies at the state and federal level as a meaningful way to lower out-of-pocket costs for patients. We continue to advocate for policy solutions that ensure patients can access the medicines they need at reasonable costs.