SB236 Alabama 2020 Session

Summary

Primary Sponsor

Tom ButlerSenator

Republican

Session

Regular Session 2020

Title

Pharmacy Benefits Managers, steering patients to affiliated pharmacies prohibited, mining patient data prohibited, requiring mail order pharmacies by health insurance plan prohibited, Act 2019-457, 2019 Reg. Sess., sections amended and renumbered; Secs. 27-45A-6 to 27-45A-10, inclusive, 27-45A-12 added; Secs. 27-45A-3, 27-45A-4, 27-45A-5 am'd.

Summary

SB236 would limit pharmacy benefits managers and health plans from steering patients to affiliated pharmacies or requiring mail-order, while boosting transparency, protecting data, and adding enforcement and licensing requirements.

What This Bill Does

It prohibits PBMs and health plans from steering patients to affiliated pharmacies or requiring use of mail-order or affiliated pharmacies. It restricts transferring prescription data to affiliated pharmacies for commercial purposes and requires PBMs to report annually on manufacturer rebates. It creates licensing requirements for PBMs, sets penalties for violations, and establishes a complaint and enforcement process with potential civil penalties.

Who It Affects

• Pharmacy benefits managers and health benefit plans, who face new restrictions on steering, data sharing, and mandatory mail-order use, plus licensing and reporting requirements.
• Covered persons (patients) and enrollees, who gain the right to choose where to obtain pharmacist services and information about cost shares and affordable alternatives.

Key Provisions

• Prohibits PBMs and health benefit plans from steering patients to affiliated pharmacies or requiring use of an affiliated mail-order distributor for prescription drugs.
• Prohibits PBMs from transferring or sharing prescription-identifiable data with affiliated pharmacies for commercial purposes, with narrow exceptions for reimbursement, formulary compliance, pharmacy care, or utilization review.
• Requires PBMs to report annually to clients the total rebates received from manufacturers and the portion that did not pass through to the client.
• Adds definitions for affiliate, affiliated pharmacy, PBM, and related terms, and renumbers/amends existing sections of Act 2019-457 accordingly.
• Imposes licensing requirements for PBMs (valid license, biennial renewal, fees up to $500) and creates civil penalties for violations (up to $5,000 per act, with penalties deposited to the state General Fund).
• Ensures health plans may not prohibit cost-sharing information disclosure or require exclusive access to mail-order services, and requires notices to enrollees about the availability of non-mail-order pharmacist services.

AI-generated summary using openai/gpt-5-nano on Feb 23, 2026. May contain errors — refer to the official bill text for accuracy.

Subjects

Pharmacies and Pharmacists