HUGE news. There's an argument prescription drug middlemen known as PBMs have been using to keep states from regulating how much they reimburse pharmacies for filling prescriptions. This has destroyed independent pharmacies. The Supreme Court just invalidated that argument. https://twitter.com/SCOTUSblog/status/1337051135656517633

What do I mean when I say reimbursements? Pharmacies, unlike other businesses, don't have direct access to their revenue, because most of the $ isn't paid by the patient at the counter but by insurers. But insurers don't pay pharmacies directly. The $ goes to PBMs first...

...and the PBMs get to decide how much of that money they're going to pass on to the pharmacies. PBMs don't have to tell anyone how much money they're passing along, so they end up pocketing a lot of that.

Independent pharmacies are lucky to break even on many of the prescriptions they dispense and routinely LOSE MONEY. But they do it anyway, because they're healthcare providers and they're committed to their patients and communities.

CVS, which most people know as a pharmacy chain, also happens to be the worst of the PBMs. They bleed independent pharmacies dry by reducing reimbursements + using seriously shady practices to steer the independents' patients to CVS locations...

...and then pressure the independent pharmacies they've spent years crippling to sell to them. Truly vile shit.