David Joyner, a longtime CVS executive, speaks during a Senate Health, Education, Labor and Pensions Committee hearing in Washington, D.C., on May 10, 2023.
Al Drago | Bloomberg | Getty Images
CVS Health CEO David Joyner on Wednesday defended controversial pharmacy middlemen like his company’s Caremark unit, which are widely accused of inflating prescription medication prices, and instead accused manufacturers of “monopolistic tendencies” that keep drug costs high in the U.S.Â
Joyner, who stepped into the role in October, spent much of his opening remarks on the company’s fourth-quarter earnings call discussing so-called pharmacy benefit managers, or PBMs. It was atypical for CVS’ quarterly call to begin that way, but comes at a time when lawmakers on both sides of the aisle and President Donald Trump have signaled interest in cracking down on PBMs.Â
CVS owns Caremark, one of the nation’s three largest PBMs that collectively…
