NJ's Horizon Joins Blue Cross Partnership To Cut Drug Costs

NEWARK, NJ — A new partnership between 18 Blue Cross Blue Shield health insurers and a nonprofit may bring some financial relief to people paying through the nose for their prescription drugs.

On Thursday, Horizon Blue Cross Blue Shield of New Jersey announced that it is joining 17 other Blue Cross Blue Shield Association members across the nation to form a $55 million subsidiary company with Civica, a nonprofit that manufactures generic drugs in an effort to combat shortages and price spikes in hospitals.

The new company will focus on making generics that currently have a “high price tag as a result of limited or no competition,” by acquiring and developing Abbreviated New Drug Applications. The effort is expected to create “hundreds of millions of dollars in savings” for consumers, and promote overall competition in the generic drugs market, according to Horizon.

The first wave of new generic drugs will be available in 2022, Horizon stated.

The Blue Cross insurers haven’t disclosed what drugs they plan to develop first, but one likely target could be insulin, which continues to remain expensive despite having generic versions available, Forbes.com reported.

Horizon Blue Cross Blue Shield of New Jersey, a nonprofit health service corporation which is headquartered in Newark, provides coverage to more than 3.6 million people throughout the state.

The new partnership will help address a major issue in modern health care: rising drug costs. Prescription drug spending averages more than 22 percent of the insurance premium dollar, Horizon spokespeople said.

“Prescription drug spending is the single biggest driver of the higher health costs facing consumers and businesses,” CEO and chair Kevin Conlin said.

“We cannot and will not simply wait for others to solve this problem,” Conlin said. “Horizon will continue to pursue every available opportunity, including creating new options when needed, and maintain the dialogue with pharmaceutical industry leaders who want to partner with us to help our members get the prescriptions they need to achieve their best health at a price they can afford.”

Other Blue Cross Blue Shield companies participating in the Civica partnership include Blue Cross and Blue Shield of Alabama, Arkansas Blue Cross and Blue Shield, Blue Shield of California, Capital BlueCross, CareFirst BlueCross BlueShield, Excellus BlueCross BlueShield, Blue Cross and Blue Shield of Hawaii, Highmark Blue Cross Blue Shield, Horizon Blue Cross Blue Shield of New Jersey, Blue Cross of Idaho, Independence Blue Cross, Blue Cross and Blue Shield of Kansas, Blue Cross and Blue Shield of Kansas City, Blue Cross Blue Shield of Michigan, BlueCross BlueShield of Western New York and BlueShield of Northeastern New York, Blue Cross & Blue Shield of Rhode Island, BlueCross BlueShield of South Carolina, Blue Cross and Blue Shield of Vermont and the Blue Cross Blue Shield Association’s Federal Employee Program.

• See related article: 11 NJ Companies Conspired In Illegal Drug Price-Gouge Scheme, AG Says

LOWERING DRUG COSTS IN NJ: A COMMON GOAL

Lowering the cost of prescription drugs has been an issue that New Jersey officials on all wavelengths of the political spectrum have embraced.

Earlier this week, New Jersey Gov. Phil Murphy, a Democratic Party member, signed A2431 into law.

The legislation, sponsored by Assemblywoman BettyLou DeCroce, a Republican who represents the state’s 26th District, caps out-of-pocket expenses for prescription drugs, limiting a patient’s share to $150 or $250 a month depending on the health-benefit plan level.

“Many people with high-cost-sharing plans don’t take vital medications prescribed by their doctors because they can’t afford their co-pays,” DeCroce said. “The result is poor health outcomes and increased long term costs for chronically ill patients. Capping out-of-pocket payments will reduce health care costs in the long run.”

Last year, U.S. Sen. Cory Booker of New Jersey joined forces with more than a dozen colleagues in the Senate and House of Representatives to introduce a three-part plan to cut prescription drug costs in the United States.

Speaking alongside another supporter of the plan, Sen. Bernie Sanders of Vermont, Booker said that there is no reason Americans should be forced to choose between paying for prescription drugs and paying for food.

“Congress can't sit on the sidelines while this is going on,” Booker said. “That's why I'm supporting this comprehensive approach to reduce the growing cost of prescription drugs, including a renewed push to pass our bill to safely import prescription drugs from Canada and other countries.”

• See related article: Cory Booker, Bernie Sanders Support Plan To Cut Drug Costs In US

U.S. Rep. Donald Payne, who represents New Jersey’s 10th District, threw his support behind the Lower Drug Costs Now Act last year, saying that he has a personal connection to the fight for affordable drugs: diabetes.

Payne, who battles the disease himself, said the “cost of diabetes” in the U.S. approaches $327 billion each year.

“Right now, we have patients and families across the country that have to make the choice between their food for the week or their medication,” Payne said.

• See related article: Rep. Donald Payne Of NJ Has Personal Link To Drug Costs Bill

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