A U.S. appeals court struck down key parts of an Oklahoma law designed to regulate the retail networks created by pharmacy benefit managers, dealing a setback to efforts to curtail the dominant role these controversial middlemen play in the pharmaceutical supply chain.
The Pharmaceutical Care Management Association, a trade group for pharmacy benefit managers that sued to block the law, objected to Oklahoma’s attempt to “interfere” with efforts to administer health plans that promote affordable choices for patients. Specifically, the group argued the law was preempted under the Employee Retirement Income Security Act and the Medicare Part D program.
For their part, Oklahoma officials argued that the state law should not be superseded by federal law because it regulates pharmacy benefit managers, not health plans. An initial attempt by the state lawmakers to pass such a law was vetoed by the governor over preemption concerns, so a new version was subsequently enacted.