Report Details Providers’ Mounting Concerns With White Bagging

White bagging continues to be a sore subject for providers, according to a June 21 Avalere Health report. As in past reports, providers surveyed by Avalere are concerned that white bagging can harm patients and lead to wasted medication — which can add up, since payers only use white bagging strategies for expensive specialty medications. The report also raised concerns that payer ownership of specialty pharmacies raises conflicts of interest and could accelerate provider consolidation.

White bagging is a payer practice that significantly changes the customary dispensing and billing arrangements around provider-administered drugs. Until recently, providers used the “buy-and-bill” framework with regard to such drugs. In buy-and-bill transactions, which still account for the vast majority of specialty pharmacy care, providers purchase a specialty drug, stock it in their facility and charge a payer for it after administering the drug to a patient.