Patient Experiences Driving Change
Patient & Caregiver Participation in CMS Reviews of 15 Prescription Drugs
Your Voice Matters
The Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) drug negotiations are promoted as a win for patients by lowering out-of-pocket costs, but healthcare is complicated and the negotiation process is still being figured out. Patient costs may go down, but they also might not go down, and unintended consequences (like switching prescribed drugs) are possible. Truth is, no one knows yet.
What can you do? CMS is seeking input from doctors, insurers, drug makers, pharmacists, patient groups, and patients/caregivers. From patient voices they are specifically looking to hear more about the diagnosis and living with it, as well as experiences using and accessing the drug.
Even if you aren’t on any of these 15 drugs, you can join the PIC. We have many other ways for patients and caregivers to get involved.
Step 1
Complete the form
Step 2
Watch for an email. Someone from the Patient Inclusion Council (PIC) will send you a personal email within 48 hours. Look for an email from someone from aiarthritis.org, leaders of the PIC.
Step 3
The email will provide details about the ways patients/caregivers can share their experience with any of the 15 drugs under review. Led by patients for patients!
These efforts are underway now, so please complete the form as soon as possible. Patients are standing by to help!
Complete the form, and you’ll be connected to patients from the Patient Inclusion Council (PIC), who will help make sure your experiences are counted! We will not use your information or email for any other reason than to contact you directly about CMS input.
Want to Learn More About the CMS Prescription Drug Negotiations?
Government prescription drug reviews are new efforts in the United States to address the high costs of healthcare. They are happening in many states with efforts called Prescription Drug Affordability Boards (PDABs) and with Medicare under CMS. The PIC supports affordable prescription drugs, but we also know the healthcare system is complex and those who choose our drugs (insurance companies/Pharmacy Benefit Managers) will still be making the decisions which drugs we will have to take.
These efforts may lower costs for Medicare, for health plans, for states, but will these savings be passed down to patients? We don’t know. But if advertisements promoting the need for these efforts all say patients will benefit, we want to make sure we do!
Learn more about the CMS Prescription Drug Negotiations from the leader of the PIC, who is also a person living with axial spondyloarthritis, a disease treated by one of the drugs under review.