Washington (December 20, 2023) – Today, Senator Edward J. Markey (D-Mass.), along with Senators Tim Kaine (D-Va.), Roger Marshall (R-K.S.), and members of the Senate Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions (HELP) Committee, joined a bipartisan group of their colleagues in a letter urging the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS), the Department of Labor (DOL), and the Department of the Treasury to lower out-of-pocket costs for prescription drugs by enforcing a rule limiting the use of harmful “copay accumulators.” Copay accumulators prevent copay assistance from counting towards a patient’s deductible or out-of-pocket maximum, which makes it harder for patients to afford their medications. 

Regarding a recent court ruling limiting the use of copay accumulators, the members said, “This decision is an important step in the right direction for low-income and other eligible patients who rely on manufacturer and nonprofit copay assistance programs to alleviate affordability and access challenges for their medicines.”

The lawmakers wrote, “Instead of appealing the court’s ruling, we urge you to adopt policies from the 2020 NBPP [Notice of Benefit and Payment Parameters] that strike the right balance of preserving a plan’s ability to control costs while also putting the patient first.”

In the letter, the senators also push for their Help Ensure Lower Patient (HELP) Copays Act to permanently prohibit the use of copay accumulators and require health plans and Pharmacy Benefit Managers (PBMs) to count the value of copay assistance towards a patient’s deductible or out-of-pocket maximum.  

In addition to Senators Markey, Kaine and Marshall, the letter is signed by Senators Joni Ernst (R-Iowa), Lisa Murkowski (R-Alaska), Elizabeth Warren (D-Mass.), Ted Budd (R-N.C.), Kirsten Gillibrand (D-N.Y.), Shelley Moore Capito (R-W.Va.), Cory Booker (D-N.J.), Thom Tillis (R-N.C.), Chris Coons (D-Del.), Mike Rounds (R-S.D.), Chris Van Hollen (D-Md.), John Boozman (R-Ark.), Jeanne Shaheen (D-N.H.), Susan Collins (R-Maine), Mazie Hirono (D-Hawaii), and Kyrsten Sinema (I-Ariz.).

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