Overall Satisfaction Scores of PBMs Hold Steady for 2013

PLANO, TX--(Marketwired - Jun 3, 2013) - Plan sponsors rate their overall satisfaction with PBMs at a 7.6 on a 10-point scale, with a low of 6.5 to a high of 9.4 observed across the PBMs for overall satisfaction. This is just one of the results released in the 2013 Pharmacy Benefit Manager Customer Satisfaction Report published by the Pharmacy Benefit Management Institute (PBMI). The survey includes responses from 396 U.S. plan sponsors representing more than 43.2 million members. In addition to overall performance, PBMs were rated on service dimensions, PBM functions, and specialty management.

"We are pleased to share objective information about PBM customer satisfaction as part of our educational and research mission," says Brenda Motheral, PhD, Executive Director of PBMI. "The flurry of merger and acquisitions in the PBM space has resulted in significant changes in the individual PBM rankings this year, particularly among the largest PBMs. Our findings provide key performance benchmarks for the industry and point to areas for further development and improvement."

Survey results are broken out by larger PBMs (more than 20 million members) and smaller PBMs (fewer than 20 million members). Key survey findings include:

• Employers are significantly more satisfied than health plans with their PBM on 10 of the 20 functional areas.
• Overall, smaller PBMs score higher than larger PBMs on overall satisfaction and likelihood to recommend.
• Thirty-five percent (35%) of plan sponsors say their PBM is completely transparent (down from 39% last year). This metric maintains a strong correlation with overall client satisfaction, and opportunities exist for differentiation among PBMs in the marketplace.
• Customer satisfaction and loyalty, measured by the Net Promoter Score (NPS), declined to +14% from +17% last year.
  • The NPS varies considerably by plan sponsor type, with both employers and unions at +19% and health plans at +8%.

The 2013 Pharmacy Benefit Manager Customer Satisfaction Report is available in electronic format for purchase. The report includes profiles of 11 PBMs.

About The Pharmacy Benefit Management Institute

The Pharmacy Benefit Management Institute provides research and education to help health care benefit executives work with pharmacy benefit managers (PBMs) and other professionals to design prescription drug benefit programs. For PBMI news, visit www.pbmi.com.