The lawsuit claims that CVS Caremark under-reimbursed pharmacies for the cost of acquiring drugs at least 200 times between May and October of 2024.
Oklahoma Attorney General Gentner Drummond has filed a lawsuit accusing CVS Caremark of under-reimbursing pharmacies for prescription drugs.
According to the Oklahoma Voice, the complaint was filed in state administrative court on Tuesday. The lawsuit claims that CVS Caremark under-reimbursed pharmacies for the cost of acquiring drugs at least 200 times between May and October of 2024.
“Oklahoma is seeing a rise of independent pharmacy closures due to [pharmacy benefit manager] practices, leaving vulnerable populations throughout Oklahoma without access to central health care,” Drummond said in a Senate committee meeting on Wednesday. “And this creates both job losses and other negative economic impacts, especially in the rural part of our state.”
The lawsuit alleges that CVS Caremark’s practices cause harm to both pharmacies and patients.
“Below-cost reimbursement causes pharmacies to lose money on filling prescriptions for their patients despite attempts to rely upon previously agreed upon bases for reimbursement,” the lawsuit alleges.

“With respect to reimbursement, small-chain or independent pharmacies’ contract negotiation power […] is aggressively imbalanced,” the lawsuit says. “The alternative […] inherently alienates patients covered under specific pharmacy benefits plans. Without the necessary […] contract, impacted patients are subject to paying out of pocket for a prescription […] or losing access to the pharmacy.”
“In rural Oklahoma, this can be detrimental to patients’ healthcare access as there is often a single pharmacy for miles at a time,” the lawsuit says.
Drummond said that CVS Caremark’s alleged failure to properly reimburse prescription drugs has likely cost Oklahoma pharmacies thousands of dollars.
“Collectively, these pharmacies have lost thousands of dollars to fill these prescriptions and help patients get the medications they need,” Drummond said in a press release. “It is critical that we have a safe and fair marketplace for pharmaceuticals in Oklahoma. My office will be working diligently to hold pharmacy benefit managers accountable to the law.”
The Oklahoma Voice notes that Drummond, who has been asked by lawmakers to enforce regulations for pharmacy benefit managers, said that successful litigation could obtain $2 million in fees and restitution.
Drummond has since said that more, unreported violations remain a possibility.
Philando Blando, a spokesperson for CVS Caremark, said that the company is still reviewing the complaint and will respond in court.
“CVS Caremark delivers daily value to our Oklahoma clients and their members,” Blando said. “We are reviewing the allegations in the complaint and will respond to them in due course.”
Sources
Attorney General’s Office sues CVS Caremark for PBM violations
Oklahoma AG sues CVS Caremark for allegedly underpaying pharmacies on prescriptions
Oklahoma Attorney General files lawsuit against CVS Caremark for ‘below-cost reimbursement’
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