A collection of recently published state and federal documents has us scratching our heads and asking, “why is it so difficult to enforce certain PBM reform laws?”  In the last few weeks we’ve seen: incomplete state audits  or audits rendered inconclusive  because PBMs didn’t turn over files as directed by state law; or audits revealing what appears to be a complacent attitude  toward implementing the state’s PBM reform laws   laws barring spread pricing , or below-cost reimb

Duluth News Tribune Author: Andrew Russell, PharmD, PUTT Board Member For many Minnesotans, the local independent pharmacy is the most accessible and consistent point of care in the health system. Whether it's a senior managing multiple chronic conditions, a parent juggling work and caregiving, or a patient in a community where health care options are limited, pharmacies remain anessential lifeline. Yet, behind the counter, independent pharmacies face mounting pressures from

The legislation will impose new restrictions on pharmacy benefit managers, giant companies like CVS Caremark, Optum Rx and Express Scripts that oversee prescription drug benefits. The New York Times Reporters: Reed Abelson and Rebecca Robbins The spending package passed by Congress on Tuesday includes an effort to drive down drug prices, by imposing new restrictions on some of the most controversial practices of the giant companies that oversee prescription benefits. The leg

The following is an excerpt from a white paper we recently published in response to marketing claims made by Blue Cross Blue Shield in Kansas. For a copy of the complete paper, please contact us here :  No doubt you’ve heard PCMA and the Big Insurance lobby proclaiming PBM “value” and “savings” in ads, legislative testimony, and opinion articles. Recent federal investigations, including a January 2025 Federal Trade Commission report , reveal that the largest PBMs generated $7

Dispense Times Author: Monique Whitney, PUTT Executive Director For years, small business pharmacies have withstood oppressive PBM anti-competitive practices and other market forces that thave pushed otherwise larger legacy pharmacies to the brink of closure. Still, in 2026 there are fewer independent pharmacies left to serve the growing ranks of patients needing access to affordable medication and care. There are also fewer advocates left to fight for you, your business and

Excessive prescription refilling by mail-order pharmacies leaves piles of unneeded pills; 'Every time, there are 15 extra' The Wall Street Journal Reporters: Christopher Weaver , Tom McGinty , and Anna Wilde Mathews U nitedHealth Group’s pharmacy mailed Medicare recipient Bill Zielinski so many refills of the cholesterol drug atorvastatin that his unused stash could last a year on the pill-a-day regimen his doctor ordered. Excessive refilling is common practice at U.S. mail-

“We have accomplished a feat so rarely seen in Washington. We’ve brought the most extreme democrats and republicans together to agree and work towards the same goal.”   – Dr. Nikki Adams-Bryant, Adams Family Pharmacy, Preston GA On Thursday, December 11th, 55 pharmacy professionals from 22 states and the District of Columbia joined Representatives Jake Auchincloss (D-MA), Diana Harshbarger (R-TN), Sanford Bishop (D-GA), Rashida Tlaib (D-MI), and House Oversight Chair James Co

December 11, 2025 Washington, DC To learn more about the Pharmacists Fight Back Act and to contact your federal legislator, visit PharmacistsFightBack.org

The Independence Bucks County Author: Dr Marion Mass On January 10, 2024, 22-year-old Cole Schmidtknecht of Appleton, Wisconsin, went to his big-box pharmacy and was told that a preventative asthma inhaler he had relied on for years was no longer covered by his insurer. He would have to pay over $500 for it — out of pocket. Cole left without the inhaler. On January 21, 2024, he died as a consequence of a severe asthma attack. His father, Bil, who had the same insurance provi

Mark your calendars for Thursday, December 11, 10 am ET . That’s when Representatives Jake Auchincloss and Diana Harshbarger, together with some of our profession’s most outspoken advocates, will announce the filing of the Pharmacists Fight Back Act  bills in Medicaid/Medicare and the federal employee benefits plan.  Following on the heels of Representative Buddy Carter's PBM Reform Act (HR 4317), the Pharmacists Fight Back Act bills  are the most comprehensive federal PBM re