STAND. COM. REP. NO.  1266-16

Honolulu, Hawaii

                , 2016

RE:   S.B. No. 2376

      S.D. 1

      H.D. 2

Honorable Joseph M. Souki

Speaker, House of Representatives

Twenty-Eighth State Legislature

Regular Session of 2016

State of Hawaii

Sir:

     Your Committee on Consumer Protection & Commerce, to which was referred S.B. No. 2376, S.D. 1, H.D. 1, entitled:

"A BILL FOR AN ACT RELATING TO PRESCRIPTION DRUG BENEFITS,"

begs leave to report as follows:

The purpose of this measure is to:

     (1)  Allow in counties with an area of 2,000 square miles or more, prescription drug benefit plan beneficiaries to obtain a prescription without penalty from a non-network retail community pharmacy located within 10 miles of a beneficiary's residence, when the nearest network retail community pharmacy is located over 10 miles away;

     (2)  Require non-network retail community pharmacies to be reimbursed for dispensing to non-network beneficiaries; and

     (3)  Require the Insurance Commissioner to submit reports to the Legislature regarding the impact on healthcare costs.

The Hawaii Employer-Union Health Benefits Trust Fund; CVS Health; Walgreen Co.; Kaiser Permanente Hawaii; Hawaii Medical Service Association; Hawaii Association of Health Plans; and Ohana Health Plan opposed this measure.  The Department of Commerce and Consumer Affairs and the Queen's Health Systems provided comments.

     Your Committee has amended this measure by:

     (1)  Making it applicable to counties with an area of 3,000 square miles or more; and

     (2)  Inserting a dispensing fee of $12.50 to be reimbursed to non-network retail community pharmacies that dispense prescriptions to non-network beneficiaries.

     As affirmed by the record of votes of the members of your Committee on Consumer Protection & Commerce that is attached to this report, your Committee is in accord with the intent and purpose of S.B. No. 2376, S.D. 1, H.D. 1, as amended herein, and recommends that it be referred to your Committee on Finance in the form attached hereto as S.B. No. 2376, S.D. 1, H.D. 2.

Respectfully submitted on behalf of the members of the Committee on Consumer Protection & Commerce,

____________________________

ANGUS L.K. McKELVEY, Chair