Lawmakers in Arkansas are currently debating legislation – HB 1150 – that must be stopped before it disrupts care for tens of thousands of patients, affects fertility treatments for hundreds of women, and puts Arkansans living with diseases such as cancer, hemophilia and pulmonary arterial hypertension at risk of losing access to their medications. Additionally, tens of thousands of military service members, retirees, and their families in the state of Arkansas could face potential impact to their retail, mail, and/or specialty pharmacies.
Our family of Evernorth Health Services pharmacies – including Express Scripts Pharmacy, Accredo Specialty Pharmacy and Freedom Fertility – are proud to serve thousands of Arkansans, and we are deeply concerned about how this bill could impact their health care.
Here are the facts on what patients could lose if HB 1150 becomes law and eliminates PBM-affiliated pharmacies including retail, specialty and home delivery:
- Convenient home delivery of medicines through Express Scripts Pharmacy
- Just last year, more than 700,000 prescriptions were conveniently mailed to patients throughout Arkansas from Express Scripts Pharmacy.
- HB 1150 could leave these patients scrambling – forcing them to find a new way to get their medications.
- That could be especially challenging for the more than 40% of Arkansans that live in a rural area and may not have easy access to a retail pharmacy.
- HB 1150 will likely force some retail pharmacies to close – potentially leaving patients without any in-network options for their medications.
- Care for complex, chronic and rare conditions through Accredo Specialty Pharmacy
- Accredo shipped over 72,000 prescriptions that treat complex disease states to Arkansas patients in 2024.
- Some Accredo patients critically need medicines that they cannot get anywhere else. More than 20 different medicines, treating a range of conditions including certain types of cancer and spinal muscular atrophy, are only available to dispense through Accredo.
- Our specially trained nurses provided over 3,000 hours of patient care directly to patients in Arkansas in their homes in 2024.
- For patients that need in-home nursing support, Accredo purposefully aims to partner Accredo nurses with the same patient for each visit. This often results in the patient and their caregivers establishing strong bonds with their nurse and can lead to better adherence to medication and health outcomes.
- Patients on continuous infusions also benefit from access to an Accredo nurse, who is available by phone any time, day or night, to help them troubleshoot any issues with their medication infusions. This can often save a trip to the emergency room for our patients.
- The most vulnerable Arkansans, those who need complicated specialty medicines, could face dangerous changes to their care. They could lose the pharmacists they trust or the nurse who comes to their home to administer their medications.
- Fertility medicines
- Our affiliated fertility pharmacies provide services to hundreds of women in Arkansas, delivering more than 1,500 prescriptions last year alone.
- Hundreds of women trying to build their families could have their fertility treatments, including IVF, disrupted – potentially even mid-cycle, which could lead to failed treatment.
Bad policy: Arkansas HB 1150
Evernorth is committed to improving health care for the people we serve and working with lawmakers to make the health care system better for everyone. However, HB 1150 would do more harm than good.
Pharmacies throughout Arkansas may close their doors within months, forcing thousands of patients and their families, including seniors, to change their pharmacies and go across their town or county to fill their prescriptions. By potentially forcing the closure of dozens of retail pharmacies across the state, HB 1150 will create mass confusion among Arkansans and break the important bonds between patients and their pharmacists.
Further, current prices for businesses that provide medications to their employees could skyrocket by hundreds of dollars per employee. With the new and significant medication access restrictions in Arkansas spurred by HB 1150, the pharmacy market will shrink and competition will be reduced. With less competition in the state, prices that businesses in the state depend on to provide medications to their employees also could skyrocket by hundreds of dollars per employee, making it harder for business owners and making the state far less business-friendly.
What we can do
We are nearly out of time before Governor Huckabee Sanders considers signing this dangerous bill into law, putting health care access for tens of thousands of patients across the state at risk.
- First, spread the word and share the facts today on your channels.
- If you live in Arkansas, reach out to officials today to tell them HB 1150 puts Arkansas lives at risk.
