UnitedHealth, CVS and Cigna Sue Over 2 State Laws Targeting Pharmacy Breakups
Updated
Updated · The New York Times · Jul 8
UnitedHealth, CVS and Cigna Sue Over 2 State Laws Targeting Pharmacy Breakups
1 articles · Updated · The New York Times · Jul 8
Summary
Arkansas and Tennessee have passed laws barring major insurance conglomerates from both managing drug benefits and operating retail or mail-order pharmacies, opening a new front against their healthcare expansion.
CVS sued in federal court within hours of Tennessee Gov. Bill Lee signing the measure in May, and UnitedHealth, Cigna's Express Scripts and an industry trade group soon filed additional challenges.
The companies have paired the lawsuits with lobbying, advertising and customer text campaigns, arguing the laws would cut pharmacy access and raise prescription drug costs.
Supporters of the measures say the opposite: breaking up the vertically integrated businesses would curb practices that inflate prices, a model other states and Washington are now weighing.
As states try to break up healthcare giants, will your prescription costs actually rise instead of fall?
If PBMs are forced to sell their pharmacies, what new system will control America's soaring drug prices?
With conflicting data on their impact, are PBMs the real cause of high drug prices or a convenient scapegoat?
Breaking Up the PBM Giants: 2026 State Lawsuits and the Fight Over Pharmacy Ownership
Overview
As of July 2026, major pharmacy benefit managers (PBMs) like CVS Health, UnitedHealth, and Cigna are facing major lawsuits over new state laws in Tennessee and Arkansas that aim to limit their market power. These laws respond to concerns that PBMs’ vertical integration—where companies control insurance, PBMs, and pharmacies—drives up drug prices and harms independent pharmacies. States argue that PBMs use practices like spread pricing and steering patients to their own pharmacies, which can disadvantage smaller competitors and raise costs for patients. The outcomes of these legal battles could reshape drug pricing, pharmacy access, and the future structure of the pharmaceutical supply chain.