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Senate committee passes pharmacy-reimbursement bill as insurers warn of higher costs
Summary
The Senate Insurance & Commerce Committee adopted an amendment and passed Senate Bill 520 to set a fixed dispensing fee and change pharmacy reimbursement benchmarks, drawing testimony from independent pharmacists who described retroactive 'clawbacks' and insurers who presented multi-million-dollar cost estimates.
The Senate Insurance & Commerce Committee passed Senate Bill 520 on a voice vote after adopting an amendment that extends appeal windows and changes reimbursement benchmarks for pharmacies.
Sponsor Senator Hammer argued the bill responds to what he called problematic pharmacy benefit manager (PBM) practices and would protect patient access to local pharmacies. "We as legislators can't help that a couple stays in a bad working relationship ... but the kids shouldn't be hurt," Hammer said in closing, urging members to treat the bill as a practical response to PBM maneuvers.
The adopted amendment, explained by John Vincent of the Arkansas Pharmacist Association, lengthened the appeals period from seven to 30 days and replaced references to a pharmacy's invoice acquisition cost with a national average acquisition cost (NADAC/NAIDAC) standard for…
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