Sunshine Sentinel

Florida Senate Bill 1306, introduced by Sen. Ana Maria Rodriguez (R-Doral), seeks to save the state almost $150 million in prescription drug costs while boosting access for the state’s Medicaid recipients.

Called the Medicaid Pharmacy Benefit Savings Optimization Act, the bill will require the Agency for Health Care Administration to select a single pharmacy benefit administrator in a competitive procurement process for Medicaid recipient pharmacy benefits. It also will require the Agency for Health Care Administration to have the procurement process and pharmacy benefits administrator selected by a specific date and bar managed care organizations to provide pharmacy benefits for their enrolled members.

According to findings in two studies conducted by 3Axis and Milliman, Florida Medicaid Managed Care is losing millions of dollars yearly in spread pricing and administrative fees. These fees leave the state and go to corporate pharmacy benefit managers.

The bill was referred to committee Feb. 24 and if passed, will become effective immediately.

“State studies conducted over the past year prove definitively that the only people in Florida benefiting from pharmacy benefits managers’ control of our current Medicaid system are the PBMs themselves,” Rep. Randy Fine (R-Brevard County) told The Capitolist.