Understanding Pharmacy Benefit Managers: The PBM Landscape Explained
EpiPen RICO Ruling Opens Door for Private AKS Enforcement
Part Two: The MFN Drug Pricing Rule and the Rebate Rule: Where Do We Go From Here?
Part One: Two new Medicare Drug Pricing Rules in One Day: What are the MFN and the Rebate Drug Pricing Rules?
Drug Pricing Initiatives During the Trump Presidency
The Spring Meeting is the largest gathering of competition, consumer protection, and data privacy professionals globally, with lawyers, academics, economists, enforcers, journalists, and students from around the world....more
The last year (and particularly the last few months) of the Biden Administration brought a flurry of activity from the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) in the life sciences space, continuing a yearslong pattern of close...more
On December 11, 2024, a bill was introduced in the U.S. House of Representatives that, if enacted, would have substantial implications for pharmacy benefit managers (“PBMs”) and pharmacies across the country. Titled the...more
In the days leading up to President Trump’s inauguration, the Biden FTC rushed to initiate major lawsuits and to tie a bow on various antitrust policy efforts. In a series of dissenting statements, the minority Republican...more
On January 14, 2025, the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) Office of Policy Planning released a second Interim Staff Report titled Specialty Generic Drugs: A Growing Profit Center for Vertically Integrated Pharmacy Benefit...more
At a public meeting held on January 15, 2025, the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) summarized the Second Interim Staff Report (Second Report) stemming from its investigation into pharmacy benefit managers (PBMs) and their...more
On Jan. 14, Lina Khan chaired what was likely the final open commission meeting of her time as chair of the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) and perhaps the final open commission meeting for the foreseeable future....more
As 2025 begins, we would like to reflect on last year’s regulatory developments in the biologics and biosimilars space. Here are some of the top regulatory developments from 2024....more
The pharmacy landscape has evolved considerably over the past year, shining a spotlight on pharmacy “patient steering”, the practice of directing patients to certain preferred pharmacies. Though Quebec has long required that...more
The Federal Trade Commission (FTC) recently sued the three largest pharmacy benefit managers (PBMs) – Caremark Rx, Express Scripts (ESI) and OptumRx – alleging that the PBMs and their related group purchasing organizations...more
This article is part of a monthly column that considers the significance of recent Federal Trade Commission announcements about antitrust issues. In this installment, we discuss the FTC's complaint on PBMs' conduct around...more
FTC’s challenge is the culmination of years of investigation, but choice of venue and theories of harm reveal potential weaknesses....more
Tensions between the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) and pharmacy benefit managers (PBMs) continue to mount, bringing PBM practices and calls for reform back into the spotlight. On September 17, 2024, one of the largest PBMs,...more
The Biden administration’s antitrust scrutiny of the life sciences industry continued this week as the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) filed an administrative complaint against the nation’s largest pharmacy benefit managers...more
To date, 2024 has not yet seen the type of mega-merger (Pfizer/Seagen) or level of agency enforcement (Sanofi/Maze or Amgen/Horizon) as 2023. But two notable investigations — one still active — show the Federal Trade...more
At an Open Commission Meeting on August 1, 2024, the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) presented a report prepared by its staff entitled Pharmacy Benefit Managers: The Powerful Middlemen Inflating Drug Costs and Squeezing Main...more
It has been a busy year for issues related to drug pricing, and with the election around the corner, litigation issues that have been developing over the last few years are likely to be a key focus for the second half of...more
Federal Circuit Allows Teva Patents to Remain in Orange Book. - The Federal Circuit recently granted Teva Pharmaceutical’s motion for a stay of removal of its patents from the Orange Book in its ongoing dispute with...more
The Cozen Lens - While it’s becoming ever clearer Vice President Harris is likely to be the Democratic nominee following President Biden’s decision to step aside, it’s less clear what the impact will be on the presidential...more
On July 9, 2024, the Federal Trade Commission (“FTC”) released an interim report describing their ongoing study of pharmacy benefit managers (“PBMs”) and their impact on access to and affordability of medicines....more
In recent remarks prepared for delivery to the White House roundtable on pharmacy benefit managers (PBMs), Federal Trade Commission (FTC) Chair Lina Khan made clear that the FTC’s investigation into PBM practices continues....more
News Briefs - Senate Committee Advances Bill on 'Ghost Providers,' PBMs - In a unanimous 26-0 vote, the Senate Finance Committee passed a comprehensive draft package that puts pharmacy benefit manager reform and mental health...more
This WSJ story highlights the challenges faced by patients as they navigate the “convoluted” ways in which drug prices are set between manufacturers and the pharmacy benefit managers (PBMs) who negotiate on behalf of health...more
On July 20, 2023 the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) voted to issue a statement cautioning against reliance on previous agency advocacy letters, reports, and studies issued between 2004-2014 that took the position that certain...more
The Federal Trade Commission, in coordination with the U.S. Department of Justice Antitrust Division, recently released a summary of the Agencies’ June 2022 joint workshop titled “The Future of Pharmaceuticals: Examining the...more