ST. PETERSBURG, Fla. (AP) — The Walgreens pharmacy chain has reached a $683 million settlement with the state of Florida in a lawsuit accusing the company of improperly dispensing millions of painkillers that contributed to the opioid crisis, state officials said Thursday.
As more expensive specialty drugs from Alzheimer treatments to new drugs for cancer hit the U.S. market, those handling prescriptions and their claims are bracing for an even larger focus on these costly medicines. Health plans and pharmacy benefit managers (PBMs) that manage drug costs speaking at this year's Asembia Specialty Pharmacy Summit in Las Vegas say specialty drugs now account for 50% or greater of the total prescription spending they manage.
The biotech company reported $3.66 billion in net income for the quarter, a threefold increase over the $1.2 billion it reported in the same period last year.
