EP231: Pharmaceutical Contracting, PBMs, Pharmacies, Employers, and the HHS Rebate Proposal: What You Need to Know Now, With AJ Loiacono, CEO of Capital Rx

Will the Health and Human Services (HHS) proposal materially impact Pharma's ability to "pay to play" on pharmacy benefit manager (PBM) formularies? We have that HHS proposal that is now at the stage where they're trying to figure out how to implement it. What's at stake right now is that implementation flowchart and who exactly is involved in adjudicating the something like $186 billion in potential charge-backs. Since any middleman who gets himself involved in any flowchart of this sort takes a buck, there is a massive land-grab opportunity that all these heretofore hidden players are battling over. My guest today, AJ Loiacono, CEO at Capital Rx, can shed light on the hidden complexity of what goes on in the dark middle of a pharma drug transaction and contracting—and that is very relevant right now. Anthony J. "AJ" Loiacono is a successful entrepreneur, with over 20 years of experience in pharmacy benefits, finance, and software development. As the CEO of Capital Rx, his mission is to change the way pharmacy benefits are priced and administrated in the United States. Prior to Capital Rx, AJ was a co-founder of Truveris, where he served for 8 years as CEO, chief innovation officer, and board member, leading the company to record growth.