Pharmacists Accused of Inflating Prices

[Rose Siding]

WASHINGTON - Pharmacists are taking advantage of Medicaid pricing rules to reap two and three times their cost for generic medicines, lawmakers said Tuesday.

"Evidence gathered by the committee suggests that Medicaid reimbursement is more generous than that of most private payers," said Rep. Joe Barton (news, bio, voting record), R-Texas, chairman of the House Energy and Commerce Committee. The panel's investigation into Medicaid drug prices was the subject of a hearing Tuesday.

Information supplied by five large retail pharmacy chains showed that drug stores paid an average of 22 cents for seven widely prescribed generic medicines, but received 56 cents in reimbursements from Medicaid, the investigation found.

Medicaid, the government health care program for the poor, spent more than $31 billion on prescription drugs in 2003, triple the amount spent 10 years earlier. The program's costs are shared by the federal and state governments.

Barton said pharmacists generally acknowledge that they are paid too much for some drugs. But they argue that the inflated prices are necessary to offset inadequate fees for other services they provide to Medicaid recipients, Barton said.

http://story.news.yahoo.com/news?tmpl=story&cid=512&ncid=1278&e=1&u=/ap/20041207/ap_on_go_co/medicaid_drug_prices

[juajen]

1. What other services?

Filling a prescription is the only service I know of that is provided to medicaid customers from pharmacists. What are they talking about? Reverse Robin Hood effect? Steal from the poor to give to the rich. Wow, sure is a lot of that going on.