FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

June 26, 2026

Press Contact:

Vincent Errichetti

(617) 922-1824

Press@johndeatonforsenate.com

Deaton: “Patients Before Profits” – New Plan to End PBM Abuses and Expand Telehealth

BOSTON, MA – U.S. Senate candidate John Deaton today unveiled a comprehensive plan to Break the Insurance Stranglehold and deliver real savings to Massachusetts patients by building on bipartisan Pharmacy Benefit Manager (PBM) reforms signed into law in February 2026.

“Massachusetts families are being crushed by skyrocketing healthcare costs driven by powerful middlemen,” said Deaton, a cancer survivorwith a unique perspective on health care.

He continued, “The Big Three PBMs control over 80 percent of the prescription drug market. My plan goes further than the recent bipartisan reforms to force real savings directly to patients instead of letting insurance middlemen continue to profit at their expense.”

Deaton’s plan includes the following key reforms:

• Using antitrust law to dismantle vertical integration, breaking up the corporate control where PBMs, insurers, and pharmacies operate under the same umbrella.
• Banning secret rebates and kickbacks so that 100 percent of savings go directly to patients at the pharmacy counter.
• Ending spread pricing that allows PBMs to pocket the difference between what they charge insurers and pay pharmacies.
• Establishing a national telehealth license compact with federal reciprocity, allowing doctors licensed in one state to treat patients across the country.
• Creating a market-based patient fallback option that is completely opt-in, delivered through private carriers or nonprofits, and funded entirely by PBM reform savings with no new taxes or government takeover.

“Patients should choose their doctor, not insurance bureaucrats,” Deaton added. “This plan expands access, increases competition, and puts families first.”

Deaton’s proposal is part of his broader “Healthcare Affordability” platform and directly contrasts with 50-year incumbent Senator Ed Markey.

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