PHOENIX — Arizona is joining a multistate consortium to help lower the cost of prescription drugs by up to 80%, Governor Katie Hobbs announced Wednesday.
She signed an executive order entering the state into ArrayRX, a public pharmacy collaborative with Oregon, Washington, Nevada, Connecticut and Ohio. The program includes a discount card for all FDA-approved prescriptions, as well as lower prices on over-the-counter medicines and supplies such as diabetes test supplies.
“Joining this compact means lower costs, fewer worries and healthier outcomes for working people, while many of Arizona’s representatives and Congress [members] vote to strip health care access away,” Hobbs said.
With the card, consumers will be able to get up to 80% off generic drugs and up to 18% off name brands.
“The discount card operates to help the underinsured as well as the uninsured,” said Trevor Douglass, who oversees Oregon’s program as the director of the Oregon Health Authority’s pharmacy policy and programs.
The discount applies to a drug’s “usual and customary” price, meaning it won’t stack with reduced prices from other programs or insurance plans.
Consumers who have insurance can get the card and compare prices. They can also use it for prescription drugs that their insurance won’t cover. However, ArrayRX purchases won’t count toward deductibles or out-of-pocket maximums.
The program is free and won’t cost the state taxpayer money. Unlike many for-profit discount programs, ArrayRX does not sell any customer information.
Doctors and other health professionals joined Hobbs for the signing of her executive order on Wednesday.
Dr. Steven R. Brown, a family physician and University of Arizona professor, said high drug prices are a big barrier for his patients, saying everyday medications for common conditions can cost hundreds every month.
“I recently heard from a patient of mine who ended up in the emergency room with breathing problems from her asthma,” he said. “I asked her why she had to go to the emergency room. … She couldn’t afford to pick up her inhaler from the pharmacy.”
Hobbs had proposed a plan to lower prescription drug prices in 2024, but her call for a state board to determine drug prices went unanswered.
“This is action that we’re taking now, that will lower costs for Arizonans right now,” she said. “Doesn’t mean we’re done fighting the rest of the fight, but this is action we can take right now.”
ArrayRX is a nonprofit run by a steering committee of public servants.
“Our sole focus is on lowering drug costs for our constituents,” Hobbs said. “It’s not on profits, it’s just on lower costs.”
Oregon and Washington launched the program in 2006 as the Northwest Prescription Drug Consortium and expanded to other states in 2022. Just under 860,000 people are enrolled in ArrayRX’s programs, according to Douglass.
“When states come together, they can then pool their purchasing power to the mutual benefit of all states that participate,” he said.
