Healthcare (Hospitals)

SB 789, now effective as of May 28, 2025, restricts how pharmacy benefit managers (PBMs) can audit pharmacies. It requires PBMs to give pharmacies 14 days' notice (30 days for wholesale audits), prohibits recouping funds for simple errors like typos, and allows pharmacies to use hospital/physician records or any drug purchase records (without date/source limits) to validate claims. The law also caps audits at 50 prescriptions per pharmacy annually and mandates that any recouped funds first be refunded to the patient. This directly affects pharmacies, PBMs, and patients by standardizing audit practices and protecting against unfair financial penalties.

SB 226 changes how Oklahoma reimburses hospitals under its Medicaid program. It requires the Oklahoma Health Care Authority to pay rural emergency hospitals more for services to Medicaid patients and to pay 25% more for obstetrical care at hospitals certified as "Baby-Friendly" by Baby-Friendly USA. The bill mandates seeking federal approval for the obstetrics reimbursement change and takes effect July 1, 2025. These adjustments directly affect rural emergency hospitals and Baby-Friendly designated hospitals providing maternity care.

SB 889 requires Oklahoma hospitals to publicly post detailed pricing information online in an accessible, machine-readable format. It directly affects licensed hospitals and state-owned hospital facilities by mandating they publish a digital list of standard charges for all services, including gross charges, discounted cash prices, and negotiated rates with insurers. The bill specifies that hospitals must display this information free of charge, without requiring user accounts, and update it annually on their public website. This transparency measure aims to help patients compare costs for services like procedures, room fees, and supplies before receiving care.

SB 570 requires hospitals in Oklahoma to provide patients experiencing fetal death or miscarriage with a form explaining how to request official certificates (fetal death or stillbirth) before discharge. The form must detail the process for obtaining these certificates under existing law and include contact information for the Vital Records Division. The State Department of Health must develop and publish this form on its website. This bill directly affects hospitals and patients in these situations by standardizing information access, without changing certificate requirements or legal processes.

HB 1812 modifies supervision rules for Advanced Practice Registered Nurses (APRNs) working in hospitals. The bill specifically changes requirements so that hospitals - not all healthcare facilities - must oversee APRNs employed by or contracted with them. Key provisions clarify that hospitals must establish supervision protocols for these nurses, while exempting APRNs working outside hospital settings. This directly affects hospital-employed APRNs and the hospitals responsible for their oversight, with no changes to other nurse supervision standards.