Bill > SB665

This bill aims to increase transparency and fairness in prescription drug pricing by requiring pharmacies to inform consumers of their right to request the lowest available price for their medications and to provide information on various pricing options, including cash prices and discounts. It also mandates that pharmacy benefit managers (PBMs), which manage prescription drug benefits for health carriers, must have written agreements with health carriers outlining their duties and fiduciary responsibilities, and are subject to increased oversight and higher administrative fines for violations, with the maximum fine for violations of state PBM laws being raised to $10,000 per day. Furthermore, the bill prohibits health carriers or PBMs from steering patients towards affiliated pharmacies through financial incentives or penalties, and requires PBMs to report detailed financial information about rebates and fees collected from pharmaceutical manufacturers to the state. The bill also extends the timeframe for notifying consumers about changes to drug formularies and increases the font size for such notices, and clarifies that denials of exception requests for medically necessary drugs are considered adverse determinations.