Date of Award

2021

Document Type

Thesis

Degree Name

M.A.

Department

Economics

First Advisor

Henning Schwardt

Second Advisor

Yavuz Yasar

Third Advisor

Chiara Piovani

Fourth Advisor

Alejandro Cerón Valdes

Keywords

Health care, Pharmacy

Abstract

On average, prescription drugs cost US consumers more than any other developed country in the world. US drug makers claim that intermediaries in the prescription drug supply chain, companies called pharmacy benefit managers (PBM), are forcing them to increase their drug prices. PBMs counter that the discounts they receive from drug makers are channeled to insurers. This thesis will examine the role that PBMs play in the prescription drug supply chain and determine what effect they have on drug prices. This thesis will utilize a comparative static model, Structure, Conduct, Performance (SCP) framework to analyze the pharmaceutical manufacturing and the PBM markets. Given the limitations of comparative static analysis, this thesis will critically evaluate the conclusion of the SCP framework and provide a more contextualized alternative. While the PBMs profit from high drug prices, drug manufacturers are the leading cause behind increasing drug costs in the US.

Publication Statement

Copyright is held by the author. User is responsible for all copyright compliance.

Provenance

Received from ProQuest

Rights holder

George Mattis, II

File size

76 pgs

File format

application/pdf

Language

en

Discipline

Health care management

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