Latest Weather Blog
Expect another effort to limit chain drug stores affiliated with pharmacy benefit managers
BATON ROUGE — Rather than ending the Louisiana Legislature's war against pharmacy benefits managers, Thursday's conclusion of the 2025 legislative session likely only paused the conflict.
Through other legislation, lawmakers successfully placed more demands on PBMs, which serve as middlemen among drug stores, pharmaceutical companies, insurance companies and individuals, but a bill that would have shuttered drug store chains affiliated with PBMs failed without a Senate vote.
Pharmacy benefits managers say they help lower drug prices, but local pharmacists complain that reimbursement rates often don't cover their cost of doing business. Lawmakers this week passed a bill ordering PBMs to pass more of their savings onto customers, but the Senate declined to take up a bill that opponents said would have closed more than 100 chain-owned drug stores.
The LSU Manship School News Service reported that Gov. Jeff Landry could call a special session to take up a bill targeting PBM-affiliated drug stores for closure. CVS Health, one of the companies that would be impacted, said lawmakers would harm consumers if a bill makes it through.
The bill by Rep. Michael Echols, R-Monroe, bars “spread pricing,” in which PBMs charge health plans more than they reimburse pharmacies. It also requires PBMs to pass 100% of manufacturer rebates to insurers or employers. The bill also gives the Louisiana Department of Insurance new authority to audit PBM contracts and enforce certification and compliance rules.
The final version also clarified the state’s ability to intervene in cases where the benefit managers deny pharmacy claims, creating a more effective appeals process.
Supporters of the tougher bill blamed its demise on aggressive lobbying by CVS, which sent texts to its pharmacy customers across Louisiana Wednesday saying it might have to close drug stories if that bill passed. That bill, by Rep. Dustin Miller, D-Opelousas, initially was written to let pharmacy technicians work remotely under certain conditions.
Trending News
The provision targeting PBMs was added in a conference committee.
After CVS contacted its customers about the bill, the state attorney general's office accused it of misusing its customer database and promised an investigation. Legal experts told the LSU Manship School News Service that such a move could run into First Amendment problems.
Arkansas has approved a similar bill, and CVS is suing it.
More News
