The program already operates at the construction company Caterpillar, where employees who purchase generic prescription drugs at a Wal-Mart or Sam's Club pharmacy are waived the $5 copayment. Some see the program as a way to help employers reduce health care costs tied to prescription drugs by scaling back the duties of pharmacy benefit managers.
According to the Chicago Tribune, Todd Bisping, pharmacy benefits and informatics manager at Caterpillar, told attendees at a Web seminar that “the easiest thing to do is look at the number the PBMs spit out.” He added: “As more and more companies realize we just can't blindly assume what's going on is best for us, they're going to start digging into it and find the same thing.”
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