AZ Legislative Update – March 25, 2022
Posted by [email protected] on Mar. 25, 2022 / AZ Legislative Update / Subscribe 0
AZ Legislative Update – March 25, 2022
Today marks the 75th day of the Arizona 55th Legislature, 2nd Regular Session and the deadline for bills to be heard in committee has officially passed. All bills that have not been heard in committee (other than the House and Senate appropriations committees next week) are now considered dead. Moving forward, legislative activity (outside the budget) will take place on the floor or through conference committees. Of the 1,764 bills introduced this session, the Legislature has now passed 95 bills with the Governor signing 52 and vetoing 0.
Budget negotiations between the Legislature and the Governor’s Office are ongoing; however, with no agreement in sight, there remains a significant amount of work that needs to be accomplished.
With summer temperatures quickly arriving and committee hearings coming to an end, we anticipate that budget discussions will intensify over the next few weeks; however, until an agreement is reached, floor calendars will be limited each day to keep rank and file members occupied.
The recent precinct committeeman (PC) snafu, caused by an overlooked legislative drafting error, a few of weeks ago, was resolved earlier this week when a Yavapai County judge ruled the provision in the bill to be unconstitutional. As for a special session to “repeal and accelerate” last year’s historic income tax cuts, the Legislature continues to be in a holding pattern.
Below, please find a few bills that we would like to highlight. Additionally, attached, you will find your full tracking list of bills.
We are continuing to engage members and staff on our top legislative priorities. If you have any questions or concerns, please do not hesitate to contact us.
Notable Key Bills
S/E: SB 1649 Pharmacy Benefit Managers; Steering Prohibition (Boyer): SB 1649 will be heard on Monday morning in the House Appropriations Committee with a strike-everything amendment that will resurrect the anti-steering prohibitions and white bagging provisions from SB 1161 Prescription Drug Coverage; Steering Prohibitions (Barto). The striker eliminates many of the vital cost saving tools used by health plans to combat the high cost of pharmaceuticals by eliminating the discounts offered to patients at lower cost pharmacies. In addition, it requires a complete redesign of most pharmacy benefit networks and patients could lose their favorite discounts at their preferred pharmacy. Unlike SB 1161, this version excludes the state health plan and passes the costs to the Arizona employers. As a poison bill, Representative Kaiser will be offering an amendment to put back in the state health plans.
S/E: SB 1176 340B Drug Programs; Prohibition (Gowan): SB 1176 along with the strike-everything amendment passed out of the House Government & Elections Committee, 9-2 with 2 members voting present. This problematic bill outlines certain prohibitions for 3rd parities that reimburses 340B drugs, including prohibiting modifiers. Despite passing, SB 1176 took a beating in committee and members are asking for significant changes before the bill moves forward. A possible solution is the Georgia 340B language and some of the plans (CIGNA/AETNA) have already signed off on it as a suitable alternative.
HB 2698 Insurance; Assignment of Benefits (Martinez): HB 2698 passed out of the Senate Finance Committee on Wednesday, 8-0. Senator Livingston intends to raise the potential constitutional issues dealing with ERISA preemption. The bill stipulates that statute prohibiting insurance payments for services from being made to anyone other than the health care provider to whom payment was assigned applies to an insurer whether acting as an insurer or performing administrative services.
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