What We're Reading: PBM Industry Oversight; Florida Foreign Drug Importation Bill; Ebola Jumps Border

AMA Calls for Intensified Oversight of PBM Industry

The American Medical Association (AMA) issued a call during its annual meeting for intensified oversight of the pharmacy benefit manager (PBM) industry. According to the AMA, PBMs have similar roles to insurers, yet face no similar oversight, and are hindering policy makers’ efforts to lower drug costs with their “byzantine” confidential contracts that drive increased costs for drugs without justification. The new policy calls for active regulation of PBMs by state departments of insurance and more transparency, according to The Center for Biosimilars®.

Florida Governor Signs Foreign Drug Importation Bill

Ebola Jumps Border as Case Is Confirmed in Uganda

Florida Governor Ron DeSantis signed a bill into law yesterday that would allow state residents to access cheaper medication from Canada and other countries through 2 strictly regulated prescription drug importation programs, The New York Times reported. While the legislation must first be approved by the federal government, DeSantis said that President Donald Trump supports the initiative and has directed HHS to accept it. Upon approval, the plan would return to the Florida Legislature for final enactment and funding possibly next year.An Ebola case has been confirmed in Uganda, marking the first time the virus has spread across international borders during the current outbreak, according to The Hill. Aid workers from the US Agency for International Development and the CDC have started vaccinating and training healthcare workers in nations that border affected parts of the Congo, including Uganda, Rwanda, and South Sudan. The outbreak has become the second-worst in recorded history as the virus has infected at least 2062 individuals and caused 1390 deaths.