Opinion | Pharmacy benefits help rural Michiganders save money on health care

Wherever I go, three issues continue to come up: inflation is through the roof, housing is too expensive and the cost of prescription drugs and health care continues to rise.

While all Michiganders face higher health care costs, they hit rural communities especially hard. That’s why I was a driving force for the Healthier Michigan legislative plan to reduce costs and increase access. That’s why I’ve advocated for affordable pharmacy benefits that help keep costs low, but also allow many rural patients to get prescriptions delivered to their door. We need to continue working hard to ensure pharmacy benefits and pharmacy benefit managers (PBMs) are protected.

Very few folks know exactly what a PBM does, so let me lay it out in plain language. PBMs are negotiators and administrators. Just like how Michigan families hire a Realtor to help negotiate a lower price on homes, employers hire PBMs to help them negotiate the lowest possible cost for them and their workers, and to manage the administration (paperwork) of their benefits. And, just like Realtors, PBMs are licensed and regulated Michigan businesses.

Thanks to their pharmacy benefits, voters  saved on average $1,000 on the cost of their prescription drugs in 2023.

Protecting pharmacy benefits is not only good for patients, but also good for businesses and our economy. Employers, large and small, utilize pharmacy benefits to provide quality and affordable health care for their employees, which saves companies money as well. No business is the same, and employers need flexibility to build plans that work best for them, including having access to lower-cost pharmacies and chronic disease management support for patients.

In Michigan and in states across the country, many politicians talk a lot about “rural America,” and yet, when it comes to action, rural communities continue to be left behind. 

Protecting pharmacy benefits and ensuring that health care and prescription drugs are affordable is the best way to turn that talk into action. This legislative session, I’m calling on my colleagues to join me in working to make health care affordable for all Michiganders. It’s the right thing to do.