In 2015, Arkansas passed Act 900, which requires pharmacy benefit managers (PBMs) to reimburse the state’s pharmacies at a price equal to or higher than the pharmacy’s wholesale cost. In response, the Pharmaceutical Care Management Association (PCMA) sued Leslie Rutledge, the attorney general of the state, alleging that Act 900 was preempted by the Employee Retirement Income Security Act of 1974 (ERISA).
Two federal courts in Arkansas held the PCMA’s position that ERISA preempts Act 900, but SCOTUS has rendered its decision reversing the rulings of the two lower courts. Ned Milenkovich, co-chair of the firm’s Health Care group, discussed the court’s position and what it may mean for the future of health care and pharmaceutical legislation in Pharmacy Times.