Burns introduces bill to restrict decisions by PBMs
H.B. 2431 comes as Martella’s Pharmacy fights to fill local prescriptions
Pennsylvania House Democratic Caucus April 21, 2026 | 12:56 PM
HARRISBURG, April 21 — With a local pharmacy battling a giant third-party administrator over its ability to fill prescriptions, state Rep. Frank Burns has introduced a bill that would ensure more people can obtain medications from qualified pharmacies by preventing administrators from restricting which pharmacies can fill Medicaid prescriptions.
Burns, D-Cambria, introduced H.B. 2431 as Martella’s Pharmacy is embroiled in a contract dispute with pharmacy benefit manager Express Scripts Inc. The St. Louis-based PBM decided last year to terminate Martella’s from its network, a move that would require many local residents to fill prescriptions elsewhere for them to be covered by Medicaid and other insurance plans.
Dubbed the Independent Pharmacy Protection Act, Burns’ bill would guarantee that any pharmacy and pharmacist in good standing with state agencies, including the Pennsylvania Board of Pharmacy, would be able to fill taxpayer-funded Medicaid prescriptions for the benefit of the patient—regardless of a PBM’s desire to direct patients and tax dollars to themselves.
“Since Medicaid is a taxpayer-funded program, PBMs should not be able to control which pharmacy taxpayer-funded Medicaid can be used at when the pharmacy and pharmacist are in good standing with the state and federal government,” Burns said. “My goal is to make it easier for people to get the medications they need from qualified, licensed providers. My bill would also support fair competition and protect taxpayer dollars from being restricted by private intermediaries.”
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“My goal is to make it easier for people to get the medications they need from qualified providers. My bill would also support fair competition and protect taxpayer dollars from being restricted by greedy private intermediaries.”
– Rep. Burns
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In Martella’s case, the chain remains in good standing with the Pennsylvania State Board of Pharmacy. It is also a valued local business that employs hundreds of people in the region, Burns said.
Burns introduced H.B. 2431after writing to Gov. Josh Shapiro asking his office to review the matter and refer it to Attorney General David Sunday for further investigation into potential antitrust violations and conflicts of interest involving Express Scripts.
In his letter to the governor, Burns wrote that Express Scripts is terminating the contract “based on two isolated incidents that occurred at only two locations—incidents that were already addressed, remediated, and resolved years ago. Notably, Express Scripts previously reviewed these matters and determined they did not warrant termination at the time.”
“The consequences for pharmacies like Martella’s and their customers are devastating in these cases,” Burns said. “The pharmacy can lose such a large chunk of revenue that they might not be able to stay in business, and that makes it harder for their customers to get the prescriptions they need. I’m not going to sit by and let that happen without putting up a fight in Harrisburg.”
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