oday’s issue of WorkCompRecap features the California WCIRB’s recent release of its updated research brief on evaluating the cost impact of the state’s Drug Formulary, which went into effect in January 2018.
Key findings in the “year-two” research brief included that while drug costs had been declining sharply prior to formulary implementation, the decline accelerated in 2018 and continued at a slightly slower rate through 2019 and pre-COVID 2020. The share of prescriptions for drugs not subject to prospective utilization review continued to increase in 2019 and early 2020, while the share of drugs subject to UR continued to decline. The share of pharmaceutical payments for opioids, compounds and brand-name drugs with generic alternatives dropped sharply in 2018 and continued to drop at a similar rate in 2019 and early 2020.
Find out more (including a link to the free brief!) by clicking here!