This week, the Eighth Circuit, located in St. Louis, heard oral arguments in Express Scripts, Inc. v. Richmond, filed against the Arkansas State Board of Pharmacy, and Iowa Association of Business and Industry v. Ommen, filed against Iowa Insurance Commissioner Doug Ommen. In both cases, laws passed in Arkansas and Iowa are being challenged on constitutional grounds. The rulings on the cases will likely not be handed down for months.
As a reminder, the Arkansas law prohibits pharmacy ownership by PBMs operating in the state. Similar legislation was passed in Tennessee earlier this year. The central question in the Iowa law being challenged is ERISA preemption.
NCPA and the Arkansas Pharmacists Association filed a legal brief in the Eighth Circuit Court of Appeals defending the landmark Arkansas law. Also, NCPA and other independent pharmacy organizations filed a legal brief in federal court supporting PBM regulations in Iowa that have been challenged by business groups and insurance plans.
Representatives from the Arkansas and Iowa state pharmacy associations were in attendance for the oral arguments.
Pictured are: Matt Pitlick, PharmD, CEO of the Iowa Pharmacy Association; Debra Wolfe, director of governmental affairs at the Arkansas Pharmacists Association; John Vinson, PharmD, CEO of the Arkansas Pharmacists Association
