Kansas Republicans defy House Speaker Dan Hawkins and pass prescription drug consumer protections bill

This week, Kansas Republicans joined Democratic lawmakers to pass Senate Bill 20, which supporters say will drive down the price of prescription drugs in the state.

SB 20 received strong bipartisan support in both chambers of the Kansas Legislature, which is dominated by the Republican party. After passing in the Kansas Senate with a 32-8 vote on Tuesday, the bill heads to Gov. Laura Kelly (D).

The bill cracks down on Pharmacy Benefits Managers (PBMs), middlemen between insurance companies and doctor’s offices. Supporters of the legislation argue that PBMs are responsible for the out-of-pocket costs of prescription drugs rising for consumers, and that PBMs promote anti-competitive practices and monopolize the drug market.

Republicans rallied around the bill despite opposition from Kansas House Speaker Dan Hawkins (R-Wichita), who has worked in the insurance industry for 30 years. Hawkins used legislative maneuvering to consistently block Senate Bill 360, a previous version of the PBM bill, from passing.

Clay Wirestone, an opinion columnist covering the state legislature for the Kansas Reflector, said SB 20’s passage was a significant development since Hawkins and Senate President Ty Masterson (R-Andover) have used disciplinary tactics to keep their caucus in line. He thinks Hawkins’ status as a lame duck leader may have contributed to the GOP rebellion on SB 20, as he is running to be the state’s insurance commissioner.

“Leadership and a small number of their handpicked lieutenants have distorted the lawmaking process past all recognition,” Wirestone said in a piece published on March 20. “Backlash was always coming. The question was when and how severely. I assume that Hawkins expected he could keep a lid on any rebellion until session’s end. As a lame duck come this fall, he couldn’t.”