Little Rock, Arkansas – The Arkansas legislature is considering a bill that would prohibit insurance firms or pharmacy benefit managers (PBMs) from acquiring pharmacy licenses.
On Thursday morning at 9 a.m., House Bill 1150 was filed. According to the bill’s text, its goal is to “support patient access to prescription drugs and pharmacy services at fair prices in a market that supports optimal patient care.”
Sen. Kim Hammer (R-Benton) and Rep. Jeremiah Moore (R-Clarendon) are the bill’s sponsors.
PBMs operate as go-betweens for insurance companies in pharmacy transactions. They have been accused of negotiating drug prices and lowering them below the going rate, which has caused smaller pharmacies to fail because of lost revenue.
The measure accuses PBMs of “acting as a ‘fox guarding the henhouse’ by being both a price setter and a price taker” in conjunction with “healthcare payors,” who are mostly health insurance corporations.
The bill would prohibit payors from holding a pharmacy permit in the state, describing the partnership between PBMs and insurance companies as “anticompetitive.” Under certain conditions, it permits Medicaid provider-led systems to have a permission.
The act will take effect on January 1, 2026, if it passes both the House and the Senate. The House did not have it on its Thursday agenda.
The legislation was supported by the Arkansas Pharmacists Association.
“The unfair and anticompetitive practices by PBMs are causing Arkansas patients to see significantly higher drug costs with fewer choices and worse care, as the Federal Trade Commission has again outlined in a new report this week,” stated John Vinson, CEO of the Arkansas Pharmacists Association. “The elimination of conflicts of interest that are defrauding Arkansas consumers and harming neighborhood pharmacies depends on this legislation.” When it comes to acquiring the prescription drugs they require, this bill helps guarantee that Arkansas patients receive better care, fair costs, and local access.
A PBM CVS Caremark representative expressed disagreement with the legislation’s premise.
They reaffirmed their commitment to shielding Americans from the soaring costs of prescription drugs. “CVS Caremark pays independent pharmacies more than CVS Pharmacy for brand, generic, and specialty prescription medications. Additionally, over the last ten years, our members’ out-of-pocket expenses have decreased by over 25%, and Caremark members currently spend an average of $8 for a 30-day supply of medications.
Limiting the PBM’s negotiating power, they continued, would “serve as a handout to the pharmaceutical industry” and result in increased prescription prices.
