Last year, the Fresno Bee published a report highlighting the tragic situation of a local woman who had been unable to receive cancer medications prescribed by her oncologist. According to the report, the doctor wanted the patient to use medication that "didn't follow the standard protocol sequence of medications," as outlined in the patient's pharmacy benefit manager's (PBM) guidelines. Sadly, as the article pointed out, this patient is one of thousands of documented cases of patients denied their medications for similar reasons. For this particular patient, each denial resulted in delays as the decision was challenged. In one instance, the patient was forced to wait nearly tow months before the drug was ultimately approved.
Read More
