Good Day BIO: PBM rebates don’t reach patients, analysis finds

A new analysis of Texas data shows—surprise, surprise—PBMs don’t pass on rebates and savings from drug makers to patients. Plus, we look at how biotech is resurrecting what’s considered Latin America’s oldest beer. Meanwhile, we’re keeping an eye on the House, which could vote on price controls as soon as tomorrow. (650 words, 3 minutes, 15 seconds)

PBM rebates don’t reach patients, analysis finds

Pharmacy benefit managers (PBMs) keep most of the rebates from drug makers, instead of using the money to enable patients to pay less for prescriptions, according to a Drug Channels analysis of data from Texas, which requires PBMs to disclose rebates, fees, and payments from drug makers.

What are PBMs? They’re the middlemen who determine what will be included in the formulary of drugs covered by insurers—and they’re often owned by insurers. PBMs demand rebates from drug makers in exchange for formulary inclusion.

Payers received most of the money PBMs collected from drug makers—80-90%, the analysis found. Payers (insurers) claim they use rebates to lower premiums, but the system lacks transparency. In fact, an earlier Drug Channels analysis found this money is mostly used to offset payers' costs.

PBMs retained a larger share of rebates than expected—13% in 2021.

Patients barely benefitted: “For 2021, only $11.9 million (0.2%) out of $5.7 billion in manufacturer payments were shared as point-of-sale savings to plan beneficiaries” in Texas, the analysis found.

Because PBMs determine patient costs for drugs, members of Congress say they should be regulated in the drug price controls expected to pass the House as early as tomorrow.

BIO agrees: BIO President and CEO Dr. Michelle McMurry-Heath has called the PBM rebate scheme one of “the biggest drivers of out-of-pocket costs in our system,” adding that drug price control legislation addressing PBMs “would have helped patients at the pharmacy counter.” BIO supports proposed legislation to address PBMs, and submitted comments on the issue to the FTC.

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How biotech resurrected an ancient beer

We missed International Beer Day (August 5), but we’re raising a glass to biotech anyway, which is bringing back one of Latin America’s oldest beers from the 1500s.

“Beer is biotechnology in one of its simplest forms,” BIO has noted. “The use of yeast is an early application of biotech because yeast is a group of single-celled fungi that breaks down enzymes.”

Now, it’s bringing back what could be Latin America’s oldest beer—which was brewed in Quito “in 1566 by friar Jodoco Ricke, a Franciscan of Flemish origin who historians believe introduced wheat and barley to what is now the Ecuadoran capital,” Agence France-Presse reports.

Here’s how: Bioengineer (and beer lover) Javier Carvajal found the original yeast used to make that beer in an old barrel at the Franciscan friary.

Using “microbial archeology,” Carvajal carefully rehydrated and resurrected the yeast from a splinter of wood, restoring the flavor using an ancient recipe. After a decade of work, he produced a beer he hopes to sell commercially, reports Food & Wine.  

Biotech is used in a variety of applications involving yeast—from making a yeast that yields green beer, a St. Patrick’s Day favorite, to making tastier plant-based meat.

More Agriculture and Environment News: 

BBC: Langya virus from animal infects 35 in China
“Scientists are tracking a new, animal-derived virus in eastern China that has infected at least several dozen people. The novel Langya henipavirus (LayV) was found in 35 patients in the Shandong and Henan provinces. Many had symptoms such as fever, fatigue and a cough. They are thought to have contracted the virus from animals. There is no evidence so far LayV can transmit among humans.” 

USDA: Online fair covers food loss and waste innovation
The USDA will hold the second virtual Food Loss and Waste Innovation Fair on September 14, 2022.

President Biden’s Thursday: Starting vacation on Kiawah Island, S.C., a location for past vacations that he hasn’t visited since becoming president, Reuters says.

What’s Happening on Capitol Hill: The Senate and House are in recess, but the House may vote on the Inflation Reduction Act, which includes drug price controls, as early as tomorrow, The Washington Post reports.