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I had a unique opportunity in high school to shadow a clinical pharmacist at my local hospital. It was a revelation: I saw firsthand what pharmacy was all about. I listened to pharmacists counsel patients about how medicines work in the human body and how the right drug can deliver relief from debilitating conditions. The pharmacy profession had me hooked.
More than two decades later, I’m a pharmacist adviser at a CVS Health pharmacy helping patients manage their conditions by providing information about their therapies—whether that’s identifying a possible harmful interaction between two different medications or educating patients about possible side effects. A key part of my job is to work with prescribers to ensure that patients are not dispensed multiple medications that might have unintended adverse effects.
My mission is to make patients’ lives easier. Many of my patients are managing their conditions alone and need help to understand their medication, handle side effects and stay on track with their treatment. While I do everything in my power to help patients take care of their health, many patients worry about the high cost associated with prescriptions. These cost concerns can often complicate their treatment plans.
Fortunately, CVS Caremark, CVS Health’s pharmacy benefit manager, makes medications more affordable and accessible for my patients. Without PBMs, my patients could be unable to pay for the medications that keep them healthy. That’s why I’m deeply concerned about legislation right here in Indiana that would obstruct PBMs’ efforts to lower out-of-pocket prescription costs.
While we all know the costs of prescription medications are sky-high and lawmakers’ efforts to lower prices are well-intentioned, SB 140 will result in higher health care costs for Hoosiers. If patients can’t afford the medications they need, my work as a pharmacist helping to get and keep patients healthy will be less effective.
By requiring retail pharmacies to pay a higher price for medicines their patients need, SB 140 and similar legislation would make it more difficult for pharmacies to serve their communities and ensure patients have access to drugs at the lowest possible cost.
The pending legislation would also require a new $10.48 dispensing fee. Dispensing fees—another charge added to the cost of prescription drugs—often land in the patient’s lap. As costs like groceries and rent continue to rise, people are really thinking about where to spend their money. Even $10.48 can be the deciding factor for someone deciding whether or not to pick up their prescription. Should SB 140 be enacted, many Hoosiers might find themselves unable to obtain the medicines they need.
Additionally, provisions ofSB 140 would prevent seniors and rural Hoosiers from accessing home delivery of medication. For folks who depend on home-delivery and the associated cost savings to easily obtain the prescription drugs they need, this legislation could be disastrous.
Hoosiers deserve access to affordable prescription drugs. That’s why I call on Indiana’s lawmakers to push back against SB 140 in the hopes of keeping out-of-pocket drug costs low for patients like mine.•
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Djurakov is a resident of St. John, Indiana, and a licensed pharmacist in Illinois. She works in clinical operations at CVS Health.
Correction: The information about the columnist has been corrected. As originally submitted, the column said Milena Djurakov worked as a pharmacist in Indiana. She lives in Indiana and is licensed in Illinois. See more corrections here.
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