Health Watchdog Finds State Medicaid Drug Cost Data Inconsistent

A federal watchdog found inconsistencies in how states report data on Medicaid drug costs, raising concerns about the accuracy of drug spending data used to oversee the program.

In a report released Thursday, the Department of Health and Human Services Office of Inspector General found some states didn’t consistently validate the data on how much pharmacies were reimbursed for dispensing drugs to Medicaid patients enrolled in managed care plans.

The audit revealed that of the 36 states that covered outpatient prescription drugs for Medicaid through managed care plans in January 2022, 28 states required the plans to report the paid ...