{"database": "press", "table": "releases", "rows": [["https://www.hawley.senate.gov/hawley-blasts-pharmacy-benefit-managers-for-screwing-patients-calls-for-breaking-up-pharma-monopoly/", "Hawley Blasts Pharmacy Benefit Managers for \u2018Screwing\u2019 Patients, Calls for Breaking Up \u2018Pharma Monopoly\u2019", "2025-05-13", "2025", "2025-05", "Republican", "Senate", "MO", "Josh Hawley", "H001089", "www.hawley.senate.gov", "hawley", "https://www.hawley.senate.gov/press-releases/page/", "scraper", "Today, U.S. Senator Josh Hawley (R-Mo.) blasted pharmacy benefit managers (PBMs) for raising drug prices and profiting at the expense of Missourians.\n\nSenator Hawley grilled Pharmaceutical Care Management Association (PCMA) President J.C. Scott, questioning why Americans pay 422% more than other countries for the same brand name prescription drugs.\n\n\u201cYou\u2019re supposed to be making drugs more affordable for consumers \u2013 would you say that you are succeeding?\u201d Senator Hawley asked, before answering his own question: \u201cI think the answer you are looking for is no.\u201d\n\n\u201cEither you\u2019re the worst negotiators in the history of the world, or something\u2019s wrong with your business model,\u201d Senator Hawley continued.\n\nHe then went on to list some notable statistics about Big Pharma and their PBM middlemen, including:\n\nThe three biggest pharmacy benefit managers own 80% of the markets.\n\nTwo counties in Missouri (Knox and Schuyler) do not have access to a single pharmacy due to lack of marketplace competition.\n\nIn fiscal year 2023, 73 pharmacies closed down in Missouri, impacting 19 counties.\n\nThe top three PBMs generated $7.3 billion in revenue from dispensing drugs in excess of the drugs\u2019 estimated acquisition costs from 2017-2022.\n\n\u201cMissourians are getting screwed while you\u2019re getting rich,\u201d Senator Hawley concluded, emphasizing the need for Congress to pass his bill to break up the alliance between insurance companies, PBMs, and pharmacies.", 1, "2026-03-30T01:40:41Z", "2026-04-06T18:20:29Z"]], "columns": ["url", "title", "date", "year", "month", "party", "chamber", "state", "member_name", "bioguide_id", "domain", "scraper", "source", "date_source", "text", "has_text", "collected_at", "updated_at"], "primary_keys": ["url"], "primary_key_values": ["https://www.hawley.senate.gov/hawley-blasts-pharmacy-benefit-managers-for-screwing-patients-calls-for-breaking-up-pharma-monopoly/"], "units": {}, "query_ms": 1.1090198531746864, "source": "dwillis/congress-press", "source_url": "https://github.com/dwillis/congress-press", "license": "MIT", "license_url": "https://github.com/dwillis/congress-press/blob/main/LICENSE"}