Relentless Health Value

Disclaimer before we get started here: This show is probably a 300-level class in pharmaceutical/PBM relations. If you are tuning in for the first time and you aren’t pretty familiar with the role of PBMs, I would go back and listen to, say, episode 241 with Vinay Patel or episode 166 with Tim Thomas from Crystal Clear Rx.  OK, now that that’s out of the way, if you’re still with me, this episode is like a ride on a roller coaster. In this health care podcast, I talk with Mike Schneider, who’s a principal over at Avalere Health. And we get into, you know, kinda deeply, the what and the why behind the "Big Three" traditional PBMs deciding that now might be a fantastic time to set up GPOs. PBMs are pharmacy benefit managers—there’s three huge ones. GPO stands for group purchasing organization. Traditionally, these GPOs have purchased drugs and supplies for hospitals and other providers at, according to their marketing materials, volume discounts. So, the unfolding story here, in a nutshell, is that ESI (Express