WTH is Massachusetts’ governor thinking?

Massachusetts Governor Maura Healey has proposed an assessment on pharmacies in the 2026 budget, one that would mean every pharmacy in Massachusetts would pay a quarterly fee of $2 per prescription dispensed in the commonwealth, or six percent of the pharmacy’s Massachusetts prescription revenues, whichever is lower. Pay attention: The proposed tax would be imposed on any scripts dispensed into the state, not just on in-state pharmacies.

With our friends at the National Community Pharmacists Association, we sent a letter this week to the governor and the chairs of both the Massachusetts House and Senate Ways and Means committees in strong opposition to “[what] amounts to a new tax on pharmacies — implemented outside of a formal rulemaking process and without the transparent input of the pharmacy community.”

It creates yet another financial burden on independent and compounding pharmacies at a time when many are already struggling to stay afloat amid unsustainable reimbursement rates from pharmacy benefit managers (PBMs) and rising operational costs. 

If you practice in Massachusetts, now is the time to contact your state legislators and explain what such an additional tax would do to your business and remind them: We cannot afford to lose more pharmacies.