Scherer Urges Senate to Pass Protections for Mom & Pop Pharmacies

SPRINGFIELD, Ill. – Recently, state Rep. Sue Scherer’s, D- Decatur, spearheaded a successful bipartisan effort in the passage of a bill to protect small locally-owned pharmacies out of the Illinois House of Representatives.

“There is no doubt in my mind that small pharmacy owners in my district and the rest of the state need this legislation,” Scherer said. “The mom and pop pharmacies are going under or are being bought out by bigger corporations.”

House Bill 3479 would change the way Managed Care Networks reimburse small pharmacies, helping them compete with big box stores. Currently, these insurance networks could pick and choose the winners and losers by giving bigger chain pharmacies better rates than smaller ones. This bill would level the playing field for small, locally owned pharmacies by preventing insurance networks from restricting or reducing the reimbursements rates to any pharmacy if it is less than the going rate. The bill is now awaiting debate in the Senate.

“If you are a supporter of small business, I urge you to call your elected officials in the Senate and Governor Rauner and urge them to support House Bill 3479,” Scherer said. “The sooner the Senate acts on HB 3479, the sooner the Governor can sign it and bring relief to these small businesses.”

Scherer represents the 96th District, which includes portions of Christian, Macon and Sangamon counties.