Employer Groups Applaud House Funding Bill that Includes PBM Reform
January 22, 2026 – Purchaser Business Group on Health led a joint employer group effort to clearly express the preferences of employers and purchasers as Congress considers, and prepares to vote on, comprehensive pharmacy benefit manager (PBM) reform legislation. This legislation would deliver greater transparency and accountability for purchasers.
Today, employers came together to issue the following statement:
Employer Groups Applaud House Funding Bill that Includes PBM Reform
The Purchaser Business Group on Health, the ERISA Industry Committee, the National Alliance of Healthcare Purchaser Coalitions, the CHRO Association, and the Silicon Valley Employers Forum commend and strongly support the introduction of critical health care reforms in the Consolidated Appropriations Act of 2026, which includes comprehensive pharmacy benefit manager (PBM) transparency and accountability provisions. These reforms represent a meaningful step toward improving access to affordable prescription drugs for millions of working families across the country.
Collectively representing hundreds of employers that provide health coverage to millions of Americans, we see firsthand how opaque PBM practices directly impact employees and their families. While PBMs play an important administrative role in the prescription drug supply chain, decades of consolidation have left just three companies controlling the vast majority of the market. This lack of competition has distorted pricing, limited patient choice, and made it increasingly difficult for employers to secure fair and transparent contracts with their PBM partners.
Employers shoulder the majority of health care costs in the employer-sponsored system, paying more than half of total expenses and the overwhelming share of premiums. Addressing rising prescription drug costs is therefore essential to restoring affordability – and congressional action is necessary to achieve it.
The PBM reforms included in the House funding bill respond directly to this challenge. They would shine a light on PBM business practices, end pricing schemes that inflate costs, ensure that savings negotiated with drug manufacturers flow to plan sponsors and patients, and remove incentives that reward higher drug prices. These bipartisan policies have been carefully considered by Congress in December 2023 and 2024, and reflect broad agreement that the current system is not working as intended.
The undersigned groups have been and remain united in calling for meaningful PBM reform that prioritizes transparency and accountability for American businesses and patients. Now, Congress once again has the opportunity to align with the interests of patients and employers who are working to lower costs for their employees.
We urge Congress to build on this momentum and enact long-overdue PBM reforms that promote transparency, accountability, and competition. Doing so will help lower costs, protect patient choice, and strengthen the employer-sponsored health care system for millions of Americans. Now is the time to put patients and employers first and move these reforms across the finish line.
Sincerely,
Elizabeth Mitchell, President and CEO, Purchaser Business Group on Health
James Gelfand, President and CEO, The ERISA Industry Committee
Shawn Gremminger, President and CEO, National Alliance of Healthcare Purchaser Coalitions
Timothy J. Bartl, Chief Executive Officer, CHRO Association
Lisa Yee, President and CEO, Silicon Valley Employers Forum