N.Y. Senate report urges lawmakers to rein in pharmacy benefit managers

Determined to assess their impact on New York consumers, the state Senate Committee on Investigations and Government Operations partnered with the Senate Committee on Health in January to open an investigation into PBMs and their practices within the state. Their findings, published Monday, paint an unflattering picture of the role PBMs play and explain why they have come to share so much blame with drug companies for America's rising drug prices.

"Every single day in this state, someone is forced to choose between buying medication that they need and buying groceries for the week," said Sen. James Skoufis, a Democrat and chair of the Investigations and Government Operations committee. "This is an atrocity and a failure of government oversight. Price hiking has plagued consumers for decades and we are currently at a point where it has gotten out of control."