For Information Contact:

Brian Adey
 798-5800

Oneida County Executive Joseph A. Griffo today announced that a task force of County Department Heads will explore the adoption of a Pharmacy Benefit Manager program to assist Oneida County senior citizens impacted by rising prescription drug prices.

"Prescription drug prices are rising beyond what our seniors can afford. We need to find new ways to protect them and we cannot wait until the federal government provides the kind of Medicare prescription drug benefit our citizens deserve," said Griffo, who has authorized the heads of the Department of Social Services, Department of Health and Office for the Aging to investigate existing PBM plans and prepare a list of options for Oneida County. "My goal is to create a plan where we hire a PBM, and let the PBM work directly with county residents who have insurance gaps so that county government does not take on any additional costs and county residents save on prescriptions. "

Griffo noted that a General Accounting Office (GAO) report found that PBMs save health plans and enrollees an average of 18 percent on brand-name prescription drugs and 47 percent on generic drugs. For those who fill prescriptions by mail, the GAO found that savings on brand-name medications were 27 percent and 53 percent on generic drugs.

Griffo also noted that PBMs could have an impact on Medicaid costs. The GAO report, he said, estimated that PBMs are getting higher manufacturer discounts on pharmaceuticals than Medicaid plans, resulting in lower costs to consumers. "If we need to hire a PBM to serve Medicaid customers as a way to reduce both state and local costs, we will thoroughly investigate the options and work with the State Senate’s Medicaid Task Force, led by Senator Ray Meier, if we can reduce costs through contracting with a PBM," Griffo said.

Griffo said under PBM plans, participants are issued cards that are good at local pharmacies. PBMs have relationships with networks of pharmacies that offer discounts on drugs to cardholders. He said the Oneida County PBM would be selected through a competitive bidding process once the department heads have completed their research on the best options to offer county residents.

Griffo noted that other New York counties, such as Nassau County, are exploring the options of creating a PBM for county residents and that a consortium of 15 counties in Michigan has been using one for a few years and it says seniors there are saving 25 to 30 percent on their prescriptions.

"The landscape of health insurance in New York State is complex because of the many plans that exist, including Medicaid, Family Health Plus, Medicare and EPIC," Griffo said. "We need to work carefully to ensure that offering a benefit through a PBM does not carry a hidden cost down the line or negatively impact other benefits. However, with health care costs rising 14 percent – and prescription prices a leader in that increase – we simply cannot afford to sit on our hands and wait for the solution to come to us."