Blister pack with dollars instead of pills The rise in federal costs comes from higherinsurance premiums, which otherwise would have been reduced by therebates. (Photo: Shutterstock)

A key part of the Trump administration's plan to lower the listprices of drugs wouldn't actually do so and would end up increasingfederal spending by tens of billions of dollars over a decade, theCongressional Budget Office said Thursday.

A proposal put forth by the U.S. Department of Health and HumanServices in January would sharply curtail a complex system ofdrug-price rebates that pharmaceuticalcompanies pay to pharmacy-benefit managers, or PBMs. The rebatesgive drugmakers' products favorable placement on list of drugscovered by health-insurance plans. Those lists can steer patientsto one product over another, using co-pays or cost sharing to makepreferred products cheaper.

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Core and Group Health
Health Care Reform
Cost-Containment