Abstract:
In this article, we analyze the variety of laws recently passed by state legislatures to address rising prescription drug costs, as well as the litigation challenges brought by pharmaceutical manufacturers to many of these laws, and the ever-expanding legal thicket that states must traverse to control drug prices. We describe how states have used their state-employee benefits programs alone or within larger cost-saving initiatives to control drug costs and discuss how they could be expanded to private insurers. Finally, we will offer a series of recommendations to state policymakers regarding options for controlling prescription drug prices.
