The healthcare industry is grappling with rising drug prices. The expectation is, though, that the wave of biosimilars launching next year will make a dent in healthcare costs. Paige Minemyer interviews Alan Lotvin, M.D., president of CVS Health’s Caremark pharmacy benefit manager, about biosimilars’ potential. 

Also in the episode, Heather Landi talks to Jennifer Schneider, M.D., about how rural communities are facing a healthcare access crisis and what can be done about it. Schneider is the CEO of Homeward, a technology-enabled healthcare provider delivering care to rural America.

To learn more about topics in this episode:

• CVS: Specialty drugs accounted for 52% of pharmacy spend in 2020
• How CVS Caremark kept specialty drug trend to an industry low in 2021
• Industry Voices—Leveraging biosimilars for lower specialty drug costs
• Rural America is fertile ground for healthcare innovation, experimentation, tech leaders say
• ViVE 2022: Former Livongo execs launch rural healthcare startup Homeward with $20M investment 
• Startup Homeward inks partnership with Rite Aid to provide primary care in rural communities
• Launched just 5 months ago, Homeward clinches $50M, inks major Medicare Advantage partnership
• GAO: Fewer providers in rural, underserved areas join advanced alternative payment models

Podnosis is produced by senior multimedia producer Teresa Carey with managing editor Querida Anderson and senior editors Heather Landi and Paige Minemyer. The sound engineer is Caleb Hodgson. The stories are by all our “Fierce” journalists. Like and subscribe wherever you listen to your podcasts.

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