I'm a healthcare CEO who has fought medication middlemen. Then my daughter's condition made it personal.

My role as CEO of the Pontchartrain Cancer Center has given me a front-row seat to the systemic dysfunction PBMs perpetuate. 

My 19-year-old daughter recently faced a medical condition that required a standard-of-care treatment prescribed by her doctor. Even with my professional expertise, her doctor and I spent countless hours fighting with a PBM to get her medication approved. It was finally approved in February, but it still took 10 long weeks before she was able to access it.

Every step of the way, we encountered a system where no one wanted to take responsibility; one person after another passed the problem along like a game of hot potato. The psychological toll of this ordeal - on her, on our family and on her medical team - is beyond words. If I, with all the resources and knowledge at my disposal, cannot cut through this red tape, what hope does any other American have?

These are not just administrative inconveniences; they are life-threatening obstacles. Patients suffering from cancer, chronic conditions or rare diseases are caught in a system that seems to value PBM corporate profits over human lives.

PBMs were originally created to lower drug costs and streamline access to medications. Over time, however, they have transformed into entities that manipulate the system to maximize profits at the expense of patients. 

This means they have a financial incentive to prioritize their own profits at every step: steering patients to their own pharmacies, limiting access to competing medications and driving up out-of-pocket costs. With nearly 80 percent of prescription drugs controlled by just these three PBMs, their decisions shape the healthcare experiences of virtually every American. This vertical integration consolidates power in ways that simply harm patients.

Congress must take immediate action to pass meaningful PBM reform. The House Energy and Commerce's Subcommittee on Health recently held a hearing to discuss PBM-driven price inflation, barriers to care, and market consolidation. The testimony reinforced what patients and healthcare professionals already know: PBMs are driving up costs and limiting access, not lowering them. 

These reforms have broad bipartisan support and represent real solutions. Patients deserve more than vague commitments; they deserve action.

It is time to put patients before profits and politics. Congress missed a crucial opportunity in 2024. Let's make 2025 the year we finally stop these life-threatening PBMs and restore humanity to healthcare. For my daughter and for our loved ones, we cannot afford to wait any longer.