HB 810: Insurance; require that final reimbursements to pharmacies for prescription drugs are based on certain formulas

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Discussed in meetings (10)

The House and Senate meetings that took this bill up, from their machine transcripts. Each account was written by Georgia Commons with AI and is not part of the record; the video is what was said.

1. House Health Committee, February 9, 2026

   From 0:50:48 · Watch on the General Assembly's Vimeo channel

   Summary by Georgia Commons: The sponsor said the substitute would extend the state employee health plan’s pharmacy reimbursement model to commercial plans, addressing payments below drug acquisition costs and pharmacy closures. A National Association of Chain Drug Stores witness described reimbursement based on national average drug acquisition cost plus a $10.64 dispensing payment, protected against later fees or repayments that reduce it. A rural pharmacy owner said losses on some commercial prescriptions threatened the business and that the dispensing payment covers operating expenses. Members asked about consumer costs, price updates, specialty drugs and later fees. Supporters said published acquisition prices update about every 14 days, the bill would prevent later reductions below the required payment, and limiting inflated specialty-drug payments could save money. A Georgia Association of Health Plans witness warned that employers and insured patients would bear added costs, requested a January effective date and an exemption for federally regulated self-funded employer plans, and urged review of insurance department data. The chain-store witness argued that a Supreme Court ruling permits this type of reimbursement regulation. A Pharmaceutical Care Management Association witness opposed the bill, warning of higher patient costs. The committee approved the substitute by voice vote, with no count stated.

2. House Rules Committee, February 11, 2026

   From 0:39:06 · Watch on the General Assembly's Vimeo channel

   Summary by Georgia Commons: The presenter said HB 810 would set a minimum pharmacy reimbursement based on national average drug-cost data, require a professional dispensing fee and prohibit certain deductions and payment averaging by pharmacy benefit managers. The presenter said underpayments threaten local pharmacies and that 200 Georgia pharmacies had closed since 2015, including two in the presenter's community. The presenter said the bill targets commercial and private insurance, not Medicaid or the state employee plan. No members asked questions. Later, a motion and second were made to place the bill on Thursday's calendar. After a member said they would be absent and requested Tuesday instead, the chair directed the committee to hold off on scheduling it.

3. House Health Committee, February 18, 2026

   From 0:15:17 · Watch on the General Assembly's Vimeo channel

   Summary by Georgia Commons: The sponsor presented a substitute for HB 810, saying the earlier version could harm rural pharmacies by disrupting existing reimbursement arrangements with pharmacy benefit managers. The sponsor said the substitute defined rural areas, protected those arrangements, changed the effective date and simplified related language. One member, citing four or five independent pharmacy closures in the member's area, asked whether the bill protected pharmacies outside rural areas. The sponsor answered that the underlying provisions applied to all Georgia pharmacies and that the rural language addressed a particular problem discovered after the previous committee vote. The committee gave the substitute a do-pass recommendation by voice vote.

4. House Rules Committee, February 23, 2026

   From 1:24:23 · Watch on the General Assembly's Vimeo channel

   Summary by Georgia Commons: The sponsor requested reconsideration of HB 810, which had been returned to the Health Committee the previous week. The sponsor said the bill would establish a pharmacy payment floor and service fee. The sponsor described a new substitute delaying implementation to July 1, 2027, at pharmacy benefit managers' request, and creating an exception requested by small rural pharmacists so they could retain their guaranteed-payment arrangements. There were no questions or calendar vote.

5. House Rules Committee, March 2, 2026

   From 0:17:51 · Watch on the General Assembly's Vimeo channel

   Summary by Georgia Commons: The committee approved a motion to return HB 810 to the Health Committee. No opposition was heard, and the bill’s contents were not discussed.

6. House Health Committee, March 5, 2026

   From 0:07:06 · Watch on the General Assembly's Vimeo channel

   Summary by Georgia Commons: The sponsor presented a revised version of HB 810, describing it as a compromise focused on smaller, independent pharmacies. In response to a member asking what had changed since the committee previously passed the bill, the sponsor said the earlier version covered large and small pharmacies, while the revision limited eligibility to ownership interests involving up to 10 pharmacies. The sponsor also proposed changing the rural-area population threshold from 35,000 to 50,000, saying 50,000 matched definitions used in recent legislation. The committee approved that amendment and then approved the bill as amended by voice vote. No opposing votes were heard in the transcript, and no numerical tally was announced.

7. House Rules Committee, March 6, 2026

   From 0:55:01 · Watch on the General Assembly's Vimeo channel · Confirmed by the 2026 House Journal, p. 2324

   Summary by Georgia Commons: A committee member asked for renewed consideration of HB 810, saying it had gone back and forth through committee. The member said the main change limited its application to independent pharmacy owners with fewer than 10 pharmacies. The discussion did not explain the underlying reimbursement provisions. There were no questions or recorded decisions.

8. House Rules Committee, March 6, 2026

   From 0:08:06 · Watch on the General Assembly's Vimeo channel · Confirmed by the 2026 House Journal, p. 2324

   Summary by Georgia Commons: A motion to place HB 810 on the supplemental calendar received a second. The chair asked for objections and announced that the bill was added without objection. No discussion of its contents occurred.

• Read aloud: House floor session, February 10, 2026 (legislative day 16), 0:48:01
• Read aloud: House floor session, February 19, 2026 (legislative day 21), 1:06:12

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