United States Government Publishing Office publisher pbl distributor dst United States Government Accountability Office author aut Government Organization text government publication eng GAOREPORTS Legislative Agency Publications gao legislative 2010-08-12 U.S. Government Printing Office 2003-09-03 monographic deposited born digital 23 p. GA 1.13:GAO-03-912 https://www.govinfo.gov/app/details/GAOREPORTS-GAO-03-912 P0b002ee180390523 f:d03912 DGPO 2010-08-12 2011-03-28 GAOREPORTS-GAO-03-912 machine generated eng fdlp REPORT GAOREPORTS-GAO-03-912 GAO-03-912 Aid for the elderly Beneficiaries Health care cost control Health care costs Health care programs Drugs Elderly persons Managed health care Prices and pricing CMS Medicare-Endorsed Prescription Drug Card Assistance Initiative Other Written Product A08279 While prescription drugs have become an increasingly important part of health care for the elderly, more than one-quarter of all Medicare beneficiaries have no prescription drug coverage. Over the past decade, private companies and not-for-profit organizations have sponsored prescription drug discount cards that offer discounts from the prices the elderly would otherwise have to pay for their prescriptions. These cards are typically administered by pharmacy benefit managers (PBM). Pharmaceutical manufacturers also sponsor and administer their own discount cards. The Administration has been interested in endorsing specific drug cards for Medicare beneficiaries to make the discounts more widely available. Legislative proposals in the Senate and House of Representatives have included drug cards as a means to lower prescription drug prices for Medicare beneficiaries. GAO was asked to examine how existing drug discount cards work and the prices available to card holders. Specifically, GAO evaluated the extent to which PBM-administered drug discount cards offer savings off non-card prices at 40 pharmacies in California, North Dakota, and Washington, D.C., and the differences between PBM-administered cards and cards sponsored by pharmaceutical manufacturers. https://www.govinfo.gov/content/pkg/GAOREPORTS-GAO-03-912/html/GAOREPORTS-GAO-03-912.htm https://www.govinfo.gov/content/pkg/GAOREPORTS-GAO-03-912/pdf/GAOREPORTS-GAO-03-912.pdf GAO-03-912 https://www.govinfo.gov/app/details/GAOREPORTS-GAO-03-912 Other Written Product GAO-03-912; Prescription Drug Discount Cards: Savings Depend on Pharmacy and Type of Card Used; Aid for the elderly Beneficiaries Health care cost control Health care costs Health care programs Drugs Elderly persons Managed health care Prices and pricing CMS Medicare-Endorsed Prescription Drug Card Assistance Initiative