A leading House Democrat wants answers from pharmacies for charging insurance an outlandish $44,000 for a basic nutritional supplement.
Rep. Elijah Cummings of Maryland wrote to Warner West Pharmacy and CVS Health Monday demanding answers to news reports that Warner West submitted the expensive claim for the supplement Reservatrol.
Warner, a pharmacy in California, submitted a claim for a 30-day supply of Reservatrol to its pharmacy benefit manager CVS for $44,707, CBS News reported in June.
At the same time, Warner was offering a 30-day supply of the supplement for $600, a fraction of the cost, Cummings’ letter said. Reservatrol is an antioxidant derived from grapes.
Cummings, the top Democrat on the House Oversight Committee, said that Warner appears to have reversed course on the insurance claim after press inquiries. The pharmacy attributed the reversal to the patient refusing the prescription.
The lawmaker, a frequent critic of high drug prices, wants Warner and CVS to provide information about the claim and any similar ones that were approved or reversed.
Cummings’ letter also referred to a pre-printed prescription form that the pharmacy “apparently used to encourage doctors to prescribe nutritional supplements sold by the pharmacy,” according to a press release from Cummings’ office.
