
AMP is WAC (and other thoughts)
Latest posts and updates
You can subscribe to AMP is WAC at https://apteka.substack.com/

Latest posts and updates
You can subscribe to AMP is WAC at https://apteka.substack.com/
ABOUT AMP is WAC
Average Manufacturer Price (AMP) is not equal to Wholesale Acquisition Cost (WAC), but it is close. And since the whole world of health policy and reimbursement is a bit WAC-y, that’s what we’re calling this update/blog part of the site. All of the opinions and thoughts presented here are our own and not the views of clients or affiliates.
A Monday off is always a double win, longer weekend and shorter week. Caught My Eye Made me Laugh. 340B can be funny. Go PhRMA. Zebras, Not Unicorns. The Food and Drug Administration announced a new rare disease approval framework. While it acknowledges the challenge of rare disease, it is unclear if the new framework…
It felt like a relatively quiet week. Or did I just completely jinx today? Caught my Eye Ask Me Anything. FAQs released on the 340B Model Pilot program. This is the program where manufacturers with 2026 Medicare negotiated drugs can move to a rebate program for 340B for the negotiated drugs. Manufacturers that submit plans…
Some weeks it feels like this newsletter writes itself. This is not one of those weeks. Onward. Caught my Eye Medicaid Math. Kaiser Family Foundation has a terrific visual of how the One Big Beautiful Bill will impact the uninsured rate by state. Employer Math. Employers are expecting a big jump in premiums (9%, 7.6%…
Caught my Eye Surely a Coincidence. President Trump called for direct to consumer purchasing at Most Favored Nation Pricing and BlinkRx said that they could offer this service. Donald Trump Jr. is on their board. Lobby Me This. Stat News had an article about a new coalition, IRA Watch, that is formed to discuss…
If you’re off this week, excellent timing. I feel like things were sort of quiet. Or maybe that is just compared to last week. Caught my Eye Work It. I had a long post I was starting to write about health insurance in America and then I saw this NYT article and just stopped; Sarah…
Today a paper I’ve been working on for a while with the Rare Access Action Project (RAAP) is unleashed — well timed for NCSL in Boston. It isn’t that prescription drug affordability boards (PDABs) are bad, I just don’t think they can meet their objectives. I’m excited for this paper to come out highlighting why…
Rumor has it that the weather will be cooler in the DC-area this weekend and I am giddy. Outside time sounds great – a hike, a cocktail on the patio, maybe getting the friend group together to start planning the next ski trip… hope you get a chance to dream big too. Caught my…
Next week we’ll have our first glimpse of the Medicare Part D premiums for 2026; I expect them to be pretty awful. The Part D redesign shifted additional liability onto plans without changing enough of the premium calculation. Some articles next week will say it is unintended consequence; I think it is an intended one…
I have a case of existential dread, and yet the world keeps spinning so let’s do this… Caught my Eye More Cowbell. Late last year I put out a report on biosimilars and it called out how the Inflation Reduction Act could hurt innovation and savings for biosimilars. Here is a report from Matrix Global…
Last Saturday I was in the customs line in Amsterdam and the agent smirked and said, “Big Beautiful Bill, huh?” I wanted to say something, but I was mostly impressed that he was following U.S. news more closely than a lot of Americans. Caught my Eye 340No. IQVIA released a study looking at the use…