Month: May 2017
Public plans facing costs pressure
The annual report, which analyses drug spending trends for 11 publicly funded plans, showed a $1-billion spike in prescription drug spending during the 2015-2016 period. That brought total documented expenditures up to $11.3 billion, 79.7% of which was covered by the plans. The rest was paid by beneficiaries either out-of-pocket or through private drug plans.
Plan costs to rise 130% by 2025
Mercer, a global consulting company, today predicted that employers’ health benefit costs will increase by 130% by 2025 due to expensive specialty drugs, higher rates of chronic and mental illness, increased fraud and rising health pooling costs.