Medicare drug formulary

OB/GYN News, Nov 15, 2004 by Mary Ellen Schneider

Officials at the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) should ensure that the new Medicare prescription drug benefit does not create a disincentive to research new drugs for conditions that affect women differently from men, according to the Society for Women's Health Research. Formulary plans under Medicare should be flexible so that treatments that affect women disproportionately or differently from men are covered, according to the group.

This should include offering both existing drugs and biologics, including off-label use, the group said. CMS should also ensure that Pharmaceutical and Therapeutic committees, which help shape formularies, include representations from experts in women's health and sex-based biology. "Because women live longer than men, often suffer from co-occurring medical conditions, and can require multiple and diverse drug combinations for disease management, they can be negatively affected by prescription drug coverage and formulary plans that do not account for these complexities," said Martha Nolan, vice president for public policy at the Society for Women's Health Research.