14 December 2016 - Express Scripts, the largest pharmacy benefit manager in the United States, said drug price inflation would likely be restrained going into 2017 and that scrutiny into pricing strategies was here to stay.

Shares of Express Scripts, which also said it was engaged in M&A discussions, were down 5% at $69.35 on Wednesday, making the stock the biggest drag on the S&P healthcare index.

Express Scripts' comments come at a time when drug pricing is a hot political topic in the United States.

Drug price inflation will unlikely represent a "significant headwind" in 2017, Chief Executive Tim Wentworth said on a call with analysts, noting that the company has not seen the value of rebates change recently.

"You're probably going to see some restraint compared to what we have maybe seen in the last couple of years."

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