The article below is a letter to the editor by Richard Esparza

Last week, a state Senate committee voted to send Bill 2040 (SB 2040) to the full Senate. Also known as the “Freedom, Access and Integrity in Registered Pharmacy (FAIR Rx) Act, the bill will force organizations called pharmacy benefit managers (PBMs) to “divest” their drugstores.

Supporters claim it will reduce costs — but the reality is that it will shut down pharmacies across the state, cut vital services, and raise drug prices by reducing competition in the marketplace. It will also interfere with new federal efforts to lower drug prices at the pharmacy counter.

For families like mine, this is one of the most important issues in our lives. My family members rely on local pharmacies for drugs, supplements, and everyday health needs because they have high blood pressure, multiple sclerosis, high cholesterol, and thyroid problems. If this law passes, getting the medicines our family needs becomes harder — and more expensive, no matter what discount card we may have in hand like GoodRx, WellRx, and Optum Perks.

The real problem in our healthcare system is not the pharmacy system. It’s that drug prices are too high to begin with. If the goal is affordability, why go after the places where people actually get their medicine instead of the companies that set the prices?

The Trump administration has already recognized that drug prices are a serious burden for American families. That’s why it supported initiatives designed to help consumers at the point of sale, including programs like TrumpRx, which offer steep discounts on certain prescriptions.

Tools like TrumpRx and similar discount platforms can make a meaningful difference. But they are not a complete answer to high drug prices, and they work only if patients can actually use them — for example, by having convenient access to pharmacies.

That’s the fundamental contradiction at the heart of this Tennessee proposal, and the reason the Senate should oppose SB 2040. If pharmacy benefit managers are forced to divest from their pharmacy operations — like what CVS is warning could shutter over 130 stores here in Tennessee — the likely result is many Tennesseans will find it harder — or even impossible — to take advantage of available savings through programs like the previously mentioned. A discount means nothing if there’s nowhere to use it.

For seniors, working parents, and rural residents, even a small increase in travel time or wait times can translate into delayed care or skipped prescriptions. Over time, reduced access also means reduced competition — and that typically leads to higher prices, not lower ones.

At its core, this proposal reflects a broader pattern of government overreach. Rather than trusting markets to adapt and compete, it imposes structural mandates that shrink supply and limit consumer choice. That’s not how you lower costs. A functioning market expands access, encourages innovation, and gives patients more options. Heavy-handed intervention does the opposite.

No one disputes that prescription drugs are already too expensive. Lawmakers are right to want solutions. But this particular bill risks making a bad problem worse. It undermines practical tools that help families today save on medicine while failing to address the underlying drivers of high prices.

If Tennessee truly wants to lead on affordability, the focus should be on expanding access, increasing competition, and putting pressure where it belongs: on the companies setting the price of medicine in the first place. If lawmakers are serious about helping patients, they need to find ways to open the market up to make prescriptions more affordable — not shut down the pharmacies that make savings possible.

Richard Esparza is a Knoxville-area business owner and conservative grassroots activist.

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