Report Materials
Most States use average wholesale price (AWP) minus a percentage discount, which varies by State, as a basis for reimbursing pharmacies for drug prescriptions. Therefore, the objective of this review was to develop for the Colorado Medicaid program an estimate of the discount below AWP at which pharmacies purchase brand name and generic drugs. In Colorado, our estimate of the overall discount below AWP for the invoice prices reviewed was 19.64 percent for brand name drugs and 65.32 percent for generic drugs. Our national estimates, included in reports previously issued, were 21.84 percent and 65.93 percent, respectively. We recommended that the Colorado Department of Health Care Policy and Financing consider the results of this review as a factor in any future changes to pharmacy reimbursement for Medicaid drugs.
Notice
This report may be subject to section 5274 of the National Defense Authorization Act Fiscal Year 2023, 117 Pub. L. 263.