UnitedHealthcare recently announced that beginning in 2019, they will pass along an “overwhelming majority” of the rebates they receive from drugmakers to members who take the relevant medications within UnitedHealth’s fully insured employer plans. This would make UnitedHealth the first insurer to enact such a policy according to UnitedHealthcare President Dan Schumacher.
According to Schumacher, the benefit could range from a few dollars to hundreds of dollars to over a thousand. Overall, the policy will affect about 7.5 million policyholders. The new policy will not affect the approximately 18.6 million consumers participating in UnitedHealthcare’s “self-insured” plans, in which the employer is the payer.
Other insurers stated that they pass along the rebate savings to consumers in other ways. Both Anthem and Aetna said rebates are used to lower premiums and fees for members.
