In Illinois, families shouldn’t have to choose between putting food on the table and filling a prescription. Yet every day, that’s exactly the choice too many parents, grandparents, and caregivers are forced to make. Not because they’ve done anything wrong, but because a powerful, hidden middleman known as Pharmacy Benefit Managers (PBMs) has made it nearly impossible to keep up.
Most people have never heard of PBMs, but they feel their impact every time they stand at the pharmacy counter and wonder why a much-needed medication suddenly costs so much. PBMs are the secretive middlemen between drug manufacturers, insurance companies, and local pharmacies. They negotiate drug prices, decide which drugs your insurance will cover, determine how much your neighborhood pharmacy gets paid, and then benefit from the savings that should be going to you.
Illinois families work hard, budget carefully, raise kids, and care for aging parents, yet too often, they still find themselves losing sleep over whether they can afford next month’s refills.
Earlier this month, House Bill 1697, the Prescription Drug Affordability Act which I was proud to sponsor, was signed into law to help bring down out-of-pocket prescription costs and put money back in the pockets of working families and seniors.
It’s past time we give Illinois families a fair break. We’ve all heard the heartbreaking stories: grandparents cutting pills in half to stretch a prescription they can’t afford to refill; parents skipping their own doses to make sure their children get the medicine they need; families forced to choose between groceries and life-saving medications. No one in our communities should ever face that impossible choice and now we’re doing something about it.
With HB 1697, we’re making sure these savings go straight to the people standing at the pharmacy counter, not into a maze of hidden fees and backroom deals.
Make no mistake, this bill doesn’t punish local pharmacists, it further protects them. It safeguards our trusted neighborhood pharmacies, the ones with decades of history and genuine care at the heart of each community. These are the local pharmacists who know your family by name, deliver to your doorstep, answer questions late at night, and often serve as a lifeline for seniors, families with complex conditions, and rural communities that have no other options.
HB 1697 levels the playing field so these local businesses can keep caring for our neighbors without being squeezed out by giant chains and PBM shell games. It also creates a grant program to support small, independent pharmacies in rural, low-income, and medically underserved communities, places where these neighborhood pharmacies are often the only accessible healthcare provider for miles. These grants will help keep doors open, jobs local, and vital care within reach.
This is about fairness and common sense. No more fine print. No more loopholes that quietly drain our bank accounts while big corporations profit in the shadows. With HB 1697, we’re putting in place clear rules that make the system work for the people and not just the powerful few.
To every family who’s ever split pills to make them last, to every local pharmacist who’s fought to keep their doors open, and to every community that’s lost a trusted neighbor behind the counter, help is finally on the way.
It’s time to put patients first, and I’m proud to have helped pass legislation that does exactly that.
-Senator Erica Harriss
