CVS Health has filed a lawsuit to block a new Arkansas law that the company said will shut down 23 CVS pharmacy locations in Arkansas by January 1, 2026.
The lawsuit calls Act 624 "unconstitutional" and claims that the law will restrict patients' access to life-saving medication, increase costs, and cause hundreds of workers to lose their jobs.
The new act, signed into law by Governor Sarah Huckabee Sanders, bans pharmacy benefit managers from owning both a pharmacy and a pharmacy license. Legislators who supported the law said it would help stop "unfair control" by major PBMs over the pricing of drugs and access.
CVS added that it violates the Constitution’s Dormant Commerce Clause, "which prevents states from discriminating against out-of-state businesses."
"Act 624 also is unlawful because it violates Equal Protection rights and is preempted by federal law," the company said in a press release. "We have a right and responsibility to challenge this harmful policy to protect patient care and fair competition."
In the lawsuit, CVS argues that PBMs are valuable to pharmacy system "because they can use their purchasing power and networks to negotiate lower drug prices" which they say could reduce prices for patients.
The lawsuit also notes that the majority of PBM-affiliated pharmacies that operate in the state are companies like CVS, Cigna, and Optum and that the law "bars only out-of-state pharmacies from participating in the Arkansas marketplace."
At this time, CVS has not made plans to close any of its Arkansas locations, and stated that they will remain open for the immediate future.
In response to the lawsuit, Attorney General Tim Griffin provided this statement:
“Pharmacy benefit managers wield outsized power to reap massive profits at the expense of consumers. The rise of PBMs as middlemen in the prescription drug market has resulted in patients facing fewer choices, lower quality care, and higher prices. PBMs leverage their affiliated pharmacies to manipulate prices, corrupt the market, and destroy competition. Through Act 624, Arkansas is standing up to PBMs on behalf of consumers, and I will vigorously defend our law.”
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