Committee narrows fiduciary language in bill governing TPAs and PBMs; amendment passes 11-0

The committee adopted an amendment on Senate Bill 3 that narrows a proposed fiduciary standard to third-party administrators (TPAs) and pharmacy benefit managers (PBMs) and requires broader disclosure of fees and contractual arrangements, the chair announced at the committee meeting.

Senate Bill 3 originally proposed a fiduciary duty that would have expressly named plan beneficiaries alongside plan sponsors. Chairman Carball and other members said the adopted change (amendment No. 17) keeps the fiduciary duty between TPAs/PBMs and the employer or plan sponsor, and adds transparency requirements including disclosure of fees, costs and commissions.

The change drew questions from Representative Dan Chester, who said beneficiaries are the people covered by plans and raised concern that removing beneficiaries from the text risks diminishing attention to employee interests. Chairman Carball and Representative…