Washington, DC, United States (KaiserHealth) – You probably haven’t heard of either Express Scripts or Medco Health Services, but their plans to merge in a $29 billion deal, announced last month, may have an impact on your pocketbook.

The two companies are giants in the health care industry. They’re what’s called pharmacy benefit managers, or PBMs: They manage the prescription drug coverage that health insurance companies offer to large organizations like corporations and unions. The companies say the merger will help them control health care costs for consumers. But will bigger really be better for consumers?

The PBM model can result in cost savings for customers, says Lisa Jackson, an administrative assistant with the Granite City, Ill., chapter of United Steel Workers who helps thousands of union retirees navigate the world of health insurance.

The people she works with – former employees of the old National Steel plant in Granite City – get prescription drug coverage through their union, and the benefit is handled by Express Scripts. Jackson says some of her retirees are saving as much as $150 each time they fill a prescription over what they would pay if they were getting the same prescription through the federal Medicare drug benefit.

‘These […]