Arkansas to fine pharmacy benefit managers nearly $1.5M
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Arkansas' insurance commissioner on Tuesday said his department will crack down on pharmacy benefit managers.
Why it matters: Known as PBMs, pharmacy benefit managers negotiate prescription benefits between drugmakers, distributors, pharmacies and insurance companies.
- They've been criticized for raising out-of-pocket costs of prescription medications and hurting independent pharmacies.
State of play: Gov. Sarah Huckabee Sanders and insurance commissioner Alan McClain said four PBMs face state fines of $5,000 for each payment allegedly made below the national average for drug acquisition cost.
- Caremark, a CVS company, has been named in 217 violations; Magellan faces 50 counts and Express Scripts 19.
- The state did not say how many violations that a fourth PBM called MedImpact is alleged to have committed.
Flashback: Attorney General Tim Griffin filed a lawsuit against Optum and Express Scripts in June. The complaint claims, in part, that the PBMs increased opioid use by controlling patients' access to less-addictive pain treatments.
What they're saying: "The Department is committed to tackling PBM abuses, " McClain said in a news release announcing the fines.
- "It's time for them to make fair and reasonable payments to our pharmacies, as required by the law, and we will enforce all elements of payment and PBM licensure statutes that violate state law, no matter the amount."
The bottom line: The announcement of fines follows a June 28 bulletin from the state Insurance Department that advises PBMs to follow state law by paying Arkansas pharmacies at least the national average drug-acquisition costs.