Those famous little blue pills will no longer be covered by CVS.
Bloomberg reports CVS Health Corp. is dropping Viagra from its coverage next year. The prescription drug, which treats erectile dysfunction, will still be sold at CVS/pharmacy stores but CVS/Caremark insurance won't help with the cost starting in January 2016.
Customers are instead being encouraged to get help in the bedroom from Cialis, the yellow ED drug made by Eli Lilly, instead of the Pfizer's brand. The New York Daily News reports CVS wouldn't say why it dropped Viagra, but noted that pharmacy benefit managers sometimes get discounts from drug makers by agreeing to shut out competitors.
According to CNN, CVS stopped covering Bayer's own ED drug Levitra in January 2012. It list of excluded drugs has grown from 34 that year to 124 next year.
"For those drugs that are removed, equally effective products with lower overall costs remain available," CVS said in a statement. "Since introducing our industry-leading and rigorous approach... we have delivered significant savings for our plan sponsors."
CVS Health Corp.'s biggest rival insurer, Express Scripts Holding Co., has reportedly banned 90 prescription drugs but will continue to cover both Viagra and Cialis.
Here is the full list of drugs dropped by CVS, according to CNN:
- Abilify (antipsychotic)
- Amitiza (irritable bowel disease)
- Avonex (multiple sclerosis)
- Bydureon (diabetes)
- Carac (dermatology)
- Cardizem (high blood pressure)
- Clobetasol spray (dermatology)
- Clobex spray (dermatology)
- Cymbalta (depression)
- Diovan (high blood pressure)
- Exforge, including Exforge HCT (high blood pressure)
- Extavia (multiple sclerosis)
- Fluorouracil cream 0.5% (dermatology)
- Fortesta (testosterone replacement)
- Fosrenol (kidney disease)
- Incruse Ellipta (Chronic obstructive pulmonary disease)
- Intuniv (ADHD)
- Invokameet (diabetes)
- Invokana (diabetes)
- Matzim LA (high blood pressure)
- Monovisc (monovisc)
- Noritate (dermatology)
- Plegridy (multiple sclerosis)
- Qsymia (anti-obesity)
- Relistor (gastrointestinal)
- Valcyte (anti-infective)
- Viagra (erectile dysfunction)
- Zubsolv (opioid dependence)
