NCPA offers input on PBM case 

ALEXANDRIA, Va. – The National Community Pharmacists Association and 41 state pharmacy associations are providing input to the National Association of Insurance Commissioners on the U.S. Supreme Court’s decision in Rutledge v. PCMA. The NAIC is developing educational materials on the case for members and state insurance commissioners who are tasked with enforcing state PBM regulations like the 2015 Arkansas law that led to the Rutledge decision. “The Supreme Court decision in Rutledge means that policymakers across the country can advance meaningful PBM regulations at the state level; this must be made as clear as possible to the policymakers passing legislation and the enforcers who would apply it,” said Matthew Magner, NCPA Director of State Government Affairs. “NCPA has appreciated the opportunity to provide NAIC with feedback on these important materials and support the group’s broader PBM reform efforts. We’re eager to see states continue to pass and enforce policies to increase oversight, rein in these massive middlemen, and ensure patients have access to affordable prescription drugs from local pharmacists they know and trust.” The NAIC will include the materials in its ERISA Handbook, the go-to resource for state insurance departments for questions on a state’s authority to regulate certain health plans. The NCPA and the state associations urge the NAIC to make clear that the case has implications for all 50 states and U.S. territories, not just Arkansas. The court unanimously found that federal law does not preclude states from enforcing reimbursement and pricing regulations against PBMs, giving states greater authority to protect their local businesses and patients from PBM reach.