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Yost Files $16 Million Suit Against Drug Middleman

Attorney General Dave Yost, then the state auditor, testified to state lawmakers about a report on pharmacy benefit managers and Medicaid in August 2018.
Karen Kasler
Attorney General Dave Yost, then the state auditor, testified to state lawmakers about a report on pharmacy benefit managers and Medicaid in August 2018.

Attorney General Dave Yost has filed a lawsuit against a prescription drug middleman that was working with the state’s Bureau of Workers’ Compensation. He’s taken the action after an attempt at mediation failed.

Yost said OptumRX overcharged Ohio BWC for generic drugs by nearly $16 million between January 2015 and last October.

Yost filed for mediation with the pharmacy benefit manager last month, but said the company responded only by scheduling a meeting. 

And Yost said at an Associated Press forum last month that this is just the first of several reviews he’s doing on PBMs: “I get asked the question from time to time – are there other shoes to drop? Baby, we’re in DSW.”

OptumRX no longer works with BWC but does provide services for one of the state’s five Medicaid managed care plans.

It said in a statement a few weeks ago that it believes these allegations are without merit.

Copyright 2019 The Statehouse News Bureau

Contact Karen at 614/578-6375 or at kkasler@statehousenews.org.