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For years, pharmacy benefit managers, who serve as intermediaries between insurers and pharmacies, accepted payments from opioid manufacturers like Purdue Pharma. In return, these middlemen facilitated the unrestricted flow of prescription painkillers even as the nation faced escalating overdose deaths from these very medications. It raises an alarming question: How can profit be prioritized over patient safety?
The report illustrates a clear conflict of interest; while these drug manufacturers profited immensely, patients suffered the devastating effects of addiction and overdose. As PBMs collected billions in fees, they neglected to implement necessary restrictions that could have potentially saved lives.