ALEXANDRIA, Va.  — The National Community Pharmacists Association issued the following statement on behalf of CEO B. Douglas Hoey urging Gov. Greg Abbott (R-Texas) to sign HB 1763, which unanimously passed the state House and Senate:

B. Douglas Hoey

“Pharmacies are among the most trusted and accessible health care providers but unfortunately, PBM overreach threatens their ability to stay in business and provide health services that patients need. We strongly urge Gov. Abbott to sign HB 1763, reining in PBMs and protecting Texas’ small business pharmacies and those they serve. Texans will be the ones to suffer if PBMs continue to engage in unfair business practices and interfere with patient care.” 

Among other things, HB 1763 would:

• Allow local pharmacies to mail and deliver prescriptions as requested by patients;
• Prohibit pharmacy benefit manager clawbacks;
• Ban PBMs from steering patients to PBM-owned specialty pharmacies;
• Prohibit PBMs from paying their affiliated pharmacies more than they pay other in-network pharmacies;
• Provide pharmacies with legal protections against retaliatory PBM actions;
• Allow pharmacists access to their contracts from pharmacy services administrative organizations, which handle some contracting and administrative services with health insurers and PBMs on behalf of small business independent pharmacies.

HB 1763 was authored by Reps. Tom Oliverson, Cole Hefner, Eddie Lucio III, Cecil Bell, and Richard Peña Raymond. Sen. Bryan Hughes helped usher HB 1763 through the Senate. The bill was also supported by Texas community pharmacy advocates.