PUTT BLOG | Midyear Update: 6 Months of Advocacy and Victories

PUTTbulletin June 2025

As we reach the midpoint of 2025, we’re looking back with pride and joy on a remarkable 6 months of grassroots advocacy, legislative victories (some of them outright miraculous, Virginia) and our collective work to protect independent pharmacies and patient access to care. Join us celebrating these wins - your wins - with the certainty that we’re only gaining momentum, and more wins are on the way:

One Big Beautiful Win: Eliminating Mandatory NADAC Reporting

Last week PUTT members and friends joined NCPA, NACDS and other partner organizations to successfully call for the removal of mandatory NADAC reporting in HR 1 (“One Big Beautiful Bill”). Accomplished in approximately 48 hours, what makes this victory remarkable is the energy with which PUTT members and friends collectively attacked the problem, having only just discovered the federal government had again punted on PBM reform. 

The problem with mandatory reporting, as Greg Reybold, Vice President for Healthcare Policy and General Counsel for APCI wrote in his letter to the Senate, is “NADAC is likely to deflate significantly if chains are required to report. Further, without the CMS-designated dispensing fee, pharmacies will be unable to offset even a fraction of these losses, further exacerbating the current reimbursement crisis for independent pharmacies.”  

The Senate listened, and early Saturday morning the language was removed. 

State-Level Victories (Still) Worth Celebrating 

Minnesota, Illinois, Virginia, Louisiana, Arkansas, and Alabama all saw successful legislative efforts led or supported by PUTT members, ranging from implementing a single PBM Medicaid model to tightening pharmacy protection legislation to banning PBMs from operating their owned pharmacies in states where they are licensed as pharmacy benefits managers.

Texas saw a particularly strategic and literal 11th hour victory when PUTT members joined forces with American Pharmacies and the Texas Pharmacy Association to prevent HB 139 from being heard … at 11:37 pm minutes before the 2025 session came to an end. HB139 would have stripped a decade or more of pharmacy protection legislation from the books, and the movement to stop it was arguably this year’s most nail-biting campaign.

Audit TRICARE Campaign Launch

With the help of PUTT members and friends whose families are on TRICARE, we’ve compiled and presented compelling evidence of pricing and contract discrimination to staff members of both the House and Senate Judiciary Committees. Our background investigation continues, as members of the public reach out to us with inside information on contracting practices and pricing strategies; EOBs and other details that will help us build the case for an independent audit of TRICARE’s prescription benefits program. 

If you haven’t done so already, please sign our petition and encourage your patients to do the same at AuditTRICARE.org. 

The Next 6 Months

We anticipate the reintroduction of a new, strengthened "Pharmacists Fight Back Act" by Representatives Jake Auchincloss and Diana Harshbarger, and "Patients Before Monopolies" Act (PBM Act) by Senators Elizabeth Warren and Josh Hawley. We look forward to devoting the full force of our attention and grassroots network toward seeing both bills over the finish line and passed into law.  

We have other projects in the works, including the PUTT Summit in September (details coming soon); our annual PBM Reform Cocktail Party (look for us at NCPA in New Orleans this October!); and the culmination of our 2024 PBM protests at CVS HQ in 2026 (details coming soon on this one too). 

The victories we’ve achieved together so far in 2025 exemplify the dedication, expertise, and unwavering commitment of every one of you - PUTT members and friends who refuse to remain silent while corporate interests threaten the future of our industry, our profession and our patients. 

Together, we are making a difference—one delightful victory at a time.

Yours in advocacy,

Monique Whitney, Executive Director