Minnesota, Wisconsin Lawmakers Consider Medicaid Drug List, New Discount Program for Uninsured

The following is a summary of recent news on prescription drugs in Minnesota and Wisconsin:

• Minnesota: The annual budget bill that state lawmakers sent to Gov. Jesse Ventura (I) last week calls for the state's Medicaid program to develop a list of more expensive drugs and require physicians to get approval from state health officials before prescribing them. Drug makers could essentially "buy their way" off the restricted list by providing the state with additional price discounts for Medicaid beneficiaries. Ventura on Feb. 25 vetoed the overall budget proposal that included the drug list provision, but state lawmakers are working to override the veto. Even if they are unsuccessful, the drug measure "is expected to resurface in a later compromise bill." The Minnesota plan is a less-expansive version of similar programs implemented recently by Michigan and Florida, both of which have survived drug industry challenges. Minnesota officials estimate that the restricted list, which will likely target about 10 classes of drugs, would save the state roughly $1.5 million in the first year, compared with the $42 million savings expected from Michigan's program in the same period (Caffrey, Wall Street Journal, 2/27).
• Wisconsin: Uninsured residents would receive discounts on prescription drugs regardless of age or income, under a bill proposed by state Sen. Kim Plache (D) and Rep. Spencer Coggs (D), the Business Journal of Wisconsin reports. The measure would allow any resident not enrolled in Medicaid, BadgerCare (the state's Medicaid-expansion CHIP program) or SeniorCare (a state-sponsored prescription drug program for seniors) to receive a "state-determined" discount after paying a $20 enrollment fee. Plache said the bill, which she will formally introduce after Gov. Scott McCallum's (R) budget amendment is passed, is "intended to give the uninsured the same bargaining clout for lower prescription drug costs" that the insured receive. Pharmacists, however, are opposed to the plan, saying that costs associated with such a discount would get passed onto them, not drug makers (Trewyn, Business Journal of Milwaukee, 2/22).