In a Bloomberg Technology article titled, “Drug Middlemen Have Slim Profit Margins — Just Ask Them,” reporters Tom Metcalf and Neil Weinberg quote Dr. Epstein in regard to the accounting practices of pharmacy benefit managers (PBMs).

The PBMs’ method of counting complies with generally accepted accounting principles. Regulators haven’t expressed displeasure with the way these drug middlemen — namely the PBM units of CVS Health Corp., Express Scripts Holding Co. and OptumRx (part of UnitedHealth Group Inc.) — present their revenues, costs and margins.

It’s a judgment call and both approaches can be reasonably justified in this case, said Barry Epstein, a forensic accountant at Epstein + Nach in Chicago.

Click on the link to read the full story, “Drug Middlemen Have Slim Profit Margins — Just Ask Them.”