H 577 — An act relating to establishing the Vermont Prescription Drug Discount Card Program

VERMONT PRESCRIPTION DRUG DISCOUNT CARD PROGRAM;

EVALUATION AND START-UP FUNDING In fiscal year 2027, the sum of $50,000.00 is appropriated from the General Fund to the Office of the State Treasurer for the costs of developing and implementing the Vermont Prescription Drug Discount Card Program as set forth in this act.

Sec.

4.

EFFECTIVE DATE This act shall take effect on July 1, 2026.

Sec.

1.

18 V.S.A.

chapter 91, subchapter 7 is added to read:

Subchapter 7.

Vermont Prescription Drug Discount Card Program BILL AS PASSED BY THE HOUSE H.577 Page 5 of 17 § 4691.

VERMONT PRESCRIPTION DRUG DISCOUNT CARD PROGRAM (a) There is established the Vermont Prescription Drug Discount Card Program, administered by the Office of the State Treasurer, for the purpose of pooling prescription drug purchasing power with other U.S.

VT LEG #388301 v.1 AS PASSED BY HOUSE H.577 Page 2 of 10 (2) As used in subdivision (1)(D) of this subsection, “volume discount contracting” means the negotiated purchase of a large quantity of a prescription drug at a decreased cost.

(c) The Treasurer may require that reasonable fees be charged to defray Program costs.

Notwithstanding any provision of 32 V.S.A.

§ 603 to the BILL AS PASSED BY THE HOUSE H.577 Page 6 of 17 contrary, the amount and method of collection of any fee shall be determined by the Treasurer based on actual costs.

(d) The amount paid for a prescription drug after application of the Vermont Prescription Drug Discount Card by an individual who is covered by a health insurance plan, as defined in 8 V.S.A.

§ 4011, shall be attributed toward the covered individual’s deductible and out-of-pocket responsibilities in accordance with 8 V.S.A.

§ 4093 and section 3612 of this title.

(e) On or before January 15, 2028, and annually thereafter, the State Treasurer shall submit a report to the House Committee on Health Care, the Senate Committee on Health and Welfare, and the Governor detailing the activities of the Program during the previous calendar year, including the number of Vermont residents and pharmacies participating in the Program, the amount of savings on prescription drug costs achieved, and the balance in the Vermont Prescription Drug Discount Card Program Fund.

§ 4692.

VERMONT PRESCRIPTION DRUG DISCOUNT CARD PROGRAM FUND (a) The Vermont Prescription Drug Discount Card Program Fund is established as a special fund to be administered by the State Treasurer to support the Vermont Prescription Drug Discount Card Program established in this subchapter.

(b) The Fund shall consist of:

BILL AS PASSED BY THE HOUSE H.577 Page 7 of 17 (1) any monies appropriated to the Fund by the General Assembly;

(2) any monies transferred to the Fund from the federal government, other State agencies, or other government source;

(3) any monies from the payment of fees or other monies due to the Program;

and (4) any gifts, grants, or donations made to the Fund and any gifts, grants, donations, or investments received by the Treasurer for the Program.

(c) The Treasurer shall credit to the Fund all interest earned on Fund balances and any other income derived from the deposit and investment of monies in the Fund.

(d) Any unexpended and unencumbered monies in the Fund at the end of a fiscal year shall remain in the Fund.

Sec.

1.

18 V.S.A.

chapter 91, subchapter 7 is added to read:

Subchapter 7.

Vermont Prescription Drug Discount Card Program § 4691.

VERMONT PRESCRIPTION DRUG DISCOUNT CARD PROGRAM (a) There is established the Vermont Prescription Drug Discount Card Program, administered by the Office of the State Treasurer, for the purpose of pooling prescription drug purchasing power with other U.S.

states and territories and nongovernmental organizations.

The Program shall be made available to all Vermont residents.

BILL AS PASSED BY THE HOUSE H.577 Page 8 of 17 (b)(1) To further the purposes of the Program, the State Treasurer may cooperate with other U.S.

states and territories, regional consortia, or nongovernmental organizations, or a combination of these, to pool prescription drug purchasing power to:

(A) reduce prescription drug costs;

(B) negotiate discounts with prescription drug manufacturers;

(C) centralize prescription drug purchasing;

and (D) establish volume discount contracting.

(2) As used in subdivision (1)(D) of this subsection, “volume discount contracting” means the negotiated purchase of a large quantity of a prescription drug at a decreased cost.

§§ 111 111 and shall be available to the Office of the State Treasurer to defray costs associated with administering the Program.

§§ 4011, 4011, shall be attributed BILL AS PASSED BY THE HOUSE H.577 Page 9 of 17 toward the covered individual’s deductible and out-of-pocket responsibilities in accordance with 8 V.S.A.

§§ 4093 4093 and section 3612 of this title.

VT LEG #388301 v.1 AS PASSED BY HOUSE H.577 Page 3 of 10 Sec.

§§ 4093 4093 is amended to read:

* * * (F)(i) Exclude any amount paid by or on behalf of a covered individual, including any third-party payment, financial assistance, discount, discount card, coupon, or other reduction, regardless of whether the individual purchased the drug with or without using coverage for the drug under any BILL AS PASSED BY THE HOUSE H.577 Page 10 of 17 health insurance plan, when calculating a covered individual’s contribution toward:

VT LEG #388301 v.1 AS PASSED BY HOUSE H.577 Page 4 of 10 (II) the covered individual’s deductible, if any;

(iii) The provisions of subdivision (i) of this subdivision (F) shall apply to a high-deductible health plan only to the extent that it would not BILL AS PASSED BY THE HOUSE H.577 Page 11 of 17 disqualify the plan from eligibility for a health savings account pursuant to 26 U.S.C.

(iv) In order to facilitate the appropriate attribution of amounts paid by or on behalf of a covered individual pursuant to subdivision (i) of this VT LEG #388301 v.1 AS PASSED BY HOUSE H.577 Page 5 of 10 subdivision (F) for a covered individual who purchases a prescription drug without using the prescription drug coverage available for the drug under the covered individual’s health insurance plan, the health insurer or pharmacy benefit manager, or both, shall:

* * * BILL AS PASSED BY THE HOUSE H.577 Page 12 of 17 Sec.

§§ 3612 3612 is amended to read:

PROHIBITED PRACTICES VT LEG #388301 v.1 AS PASSED BY HOUSE H.577 Page 6 of 10 * * * (e)(1) A pharmacy benefit manager shall not require a covered person purchasing a covered prescription drug to pay an amount greater than the lesser of:

(2)(A) A pharmacy benefit manager shall attribute any amount paid by or on behalf of a covered person under subdivision (1) of this subsection (e), including any third-party payment, financial assistance, discount, discount card, coupon, or any other reduction in out-of-pocket expenses made by or on behalf of a covered person for prescription drugs, regardless of whether the BILL AS PASSED BY THE HOUSE H.577 Page 13 of 17 person purchased the drug with or without using coverage for the drug under any health benefit plan, toward:

VT LEG #388301 v.1 AS PASSED BY HOUSE H.577 Page 7 of 10 (i) the out-of-pocket limits for prescription drug costs under 8 V.S.A.

BILL AS PASSED BY THE HOUSE H.577 Page 14 of 17 (C) The provisions of subdivision (A) of this subdivision (2) shall apply to a high-deductible health plan only to the extent that it would not disqualify the plan from eligibility for a health savings account pursuant to 26 U.S.C.

VT LEG #388301 v.1 AS PASSED BY HOUSE H.577 Page 8 of 10 (D) In order to facilitate the appropriate attribution of amounts paid by or on behalf of a covered person pursuant to subdivision (A) of this subdivision (2) for a covered person who purchases a prescription drug without using the prescription drug coverage available for the drug under the covered person’s health benefit plan, the pharmacy benefit manager shall:

BILL AS PASSED BY THE HOUSE H.577 Page 15 of 17 * * * Sec.

§§ 111 111 is amended to read:

FINANCIAL LITERACY AND ECONOMIC EMPOWERMENT TRUST FUND VT LEG #388301 v.1 AS PASSED BY HOUSE H.577 Page 9 of 10 (a) There is hereby established and created a special fund entitled the Financial Literacy and Economic Empowerment Trust Fund to be administered by the State Treasurer.

The Funds Monies in the Fund may be expended in accordance with the trust fund provisions of section 462 of this title for such financial literacy projects as the Treasurer may direct and to defray costs associated with administering the Vermont Prescription Drug Discount Program BILL AS PASSED BY THE HOUSE H.577 Page 16 of 17 established pursuant to 18 V.S.A.

All balances in the Fund at the end of VT LEG #388301 v.1 AS PASSED BY HOUSE H.577 Page 10 of 10 the fiscal year shall be carried forward and shall not revert to the General Fund.

1 of this act, as of that date, including any recommendations for improving the administration of the ProgramProgram, any fees to be charged to participants, and an estimate of the projected costs to the State in the event that additional financial support is determined to be necessary to administer the Program.

EVALUATION AND START-UP FUNDING BILL AS PASSED BY THE HOUSE H.577 Page 17 of 17 In fiscal year 2027, the sum of $50,000.00 is appropriated from the General Fund to the Office of the State Treasurer for the costs of developing and implementing the Vermont Prescription Drug Discount Card Program as set forth in this act.

VT LEG #388301 v.1