A new policy that allows Medicare Advantage plans to use step therapy to control spending on prescription drug administered in the office is not going over well with doctors.
Dr. David I. Daikh
The Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services announced the policy change Aug. 7, which will give Medicare Advantage plan sponsors the “choice of implementing step therapy to manage Part B drugs, beginning Jan. 1, 2019,” the agency said in a statement.
The action is part of the broader Trump administration initiative to lower the prices and out-of-pocket costs of prescription drugs as outlined in the American Patients First blueprint.
By “implementing step therapy along with care coordination and drug adherence programs in [Medicare Advantage], it will lower costs and improve the quality of care for Medicare beneficiaries,” CMS officials said in a statement. The move to allow step therapy will give Medicare Advantage plan sponsors the ability to negotiate the designation of a preferred drug, something the agency believes could result in lower prices for these drugs, which in turn will lower the copays for Medicare beneficiaries.
Plan sponsors will be required to pass savings onto beneficiaries through some sort of rewards program, according to a memo detailing the policy change, which also notes that plan rewards “cannot be offered in the form of cash or monetary rebate, but may be offered as gift cards or other items value to all eligible enrollees.”
The value of the rewards must be more than half of the savings generated from implementing the step therapy program, according to the memo.
CMS officials noted that there will be a process that beneficiaries can follow if they believe they need direct access to a drug that would otherwise be available only after failing on another drug.
The American Gastroenterological Association “is concerned that the proposal could limit access for current and future beneficiaries and could add to the growing regulatory burden that physicians already face,” according to a statement. AGA stated that “any change in policy must ensure that patients have access to the appropriate therapies to manage their diseases and not contribute to additional administrative burdens for physician practices.” In addition to responding to CMS, AGA continues to advocate to Congress for patient protections for those subject to step therapy protocols in employer-sponsored health plans; learn more at http:/ow.ly/kp8l30lnDmp.
Dr. Barbara L. McAneny
The new policy applies to only new prescriptions or administrations of Part B drugs. Patients will not have current treatments disrupted if that drug is not the first drug on the step therapy ladder. Additionally, patients will have the opportunity to make a one-time change in plans during the first quarter annually if they are finding the plan is not working for them. Plan sponsors must disclose that Part B drugs may be subject to step therapy.
