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Joint committee weighs new tools to rein in drug prices, expand PBM oversight
Summary
Lawmakers and health advocates at a Joint Committee on Healthcare Finance hearing discussed Senate Bill 868 and related measures that would strengthen state oversight of prescription drug pricing, increase transparency across the drug supply chain, and give Massachusetts authority to set upper payment limits for certain high‑cost medicines.
Members of the Joint Committee on Healthcare Finance heard multi‑stakeholder testimony Thursday on Senate Bill 868 and companion measures aimed at addressing rising prescription drug costs and the market power of pharmacy benefit managers (PBMs).
The bill would expand the Health Policy Commission’s (HPC) authority and create new tools to review drug affordability, including an upper payment limit (UPL) mechanism modeled on programs in states such as Maryland and Colorado. Advocates, health plans, patient groups and the attorney general’s office urged action; pharmaceutical industry groups and some supply‑chain representatives raised concerns about implementation and potential access effects.
Why it matters: Prescription drugs are the single largest driver of health care spending increases in Massachusetts, witnesses said. Health Care for All cited CHIA data showing rapid growth in pharmacy spending and hospital outpatient costs; patient and disability advocates described…
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