From CNBC: 2024-11-19 15:31:51

CVS Health, UnitedHealth Group, and Cigna filed a lawsuit against the FTC, claiming the agency’s case against drug supply chain middlemen for high insulin prices is unconstitutional. The FTC had sued CVS’s Caremark, Cigna’s Express Scripts, and UnitedHealth’s Optum Rx, accusing them of inflating insulin costs with a rebate system.

The lawsuit was filed in the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Missouri, marking the latest development in a legal battle between the PBMs and the FTC. The companies argue that the FTC’s process violates due process rights under the Fifth Amendment and involves private rights that should be litigated in federal court.

PBMs negotiate rebates with drug manufacturers, reimburse pharmacies, and create lists of covered medications. CVS, UnitedHealth Group, and Cigna demanded FTC Chair Lina Khan and two other commissioners recuse themselves from the case, citing bias. The three companies collectively administer 80% of the nation’s prescriptions, according to the FTC.



Read more at CNBC: CVS, UnitedHealth, Cigna sue to block FTC case over insulin prices