What is White Bagging?
White bagging refers to the distribution of specialty medication from a specialty pharmacy or PBM directly to the physician’s office, hospital, or clinic for administration to a specific patient.
White bagging is often used by oncology practices and other providers to obtain costly injectable or infusible medications that aren’t available in traditional pharmacies and must be administered by a health care provider.
Why do payers use white bagging?
Payers often use white bagging to control costs, route dispensing through preferred specialty pharmacies, reduce drug waste, and maintain tighter utilization management.
Why do providers often oppose white bagging?
Providers argue that white bagging can:
- Disrupt treatment schedules
- Reduce their ability to manage inventory
- Increase risk of delays
- Complicate patient care workflows
- Limit providers’ ability to use their own 340B or in-house pharmacy channels
What is a white bagging pharmacy?
A white bagging pharmacy is typically a specialty pharmacy outside of a health system and is seen by providers as more inflexible than the traditional system that distributes medication directly to a physician’s office, hospital, or clinic for administration.
What is white bagging vs. buy and bill?
The difference between white bagging vs. buy and bill is that white-bagged medication is distributed to the physician’s office, hospital, or clinic for administration, typically from a specialty pharmacy for a specific patient. With buy and bill, the medication is already stored at the healthcare facility and the provider submits a claim for reimbursement after the patient receives the drug.
