Pharma Costs Have Fallen, but Specialty Treatments Could Send Prices Back Up

Lower claims costs over the past several years have pushed workers' compensation pharmacy costs down, but emerging and expensive specialty treatments could reverse the trend if stakeholders aren't discerning in weeding them out, a national pharmacy expert said. Manufacturers are marketing drug compounds, therapeutic topicals and so-called “combo packs,” all of which use existing medications or ingredients to create seemingly new treatments but at much higher prices, said Nikki Wilson, director of pharmacy product development at Coventry, a workers’ comp pharmacy ...