May 20, 2025

CT Targets Junk Fees, Price Gauging

CT Senate Passes Sweeping Consumer Protection Bill The Connecticut Senate passed an expansive consumer protection bill ( SB 5 ). Among other things, the measure would require service providers such as hotels to use “all-in” pricing, fully disclosing all mandatory fees prior to checkout, instead of employing so-called “junk fees.” The bill would also allow the state’s attorney general to...

May 20, 2025

Social Media Warning Label Bills & Data Centers in Crosshairs of State Lawmakers

Social Media Warning Label Legislation Catching on in States Although Congress hasn’t responded to former U.S. Surgeon General Vivek Murthy’s call last June to take up legislation requiring social media platforms to carry warning labels indicating that social media may be harmful to the mental health of young people, state lawmakers have taken up that cause. A bill ( HB 499 ) passed by the Texas House...

May 20, 2025

OR Lawmakers Look to Curb Age Discrimination

OR Lawmakers Pass Age Discrimination Bill Oregon’s legislature passed a bill ( HB 3187 ) that would prohibit an employer from requesting an applicant’s age, date of birth or date of graduation before conducting an initial interview or making a conditional offer of employment. The measure, which is supported by some of the state’s largest unions, including the Oregon Nurse’s Association, now goes...

May 20, 2025

Healthcare Bills Approved in WI, PBM Regulations Passed in IA & More

WI Assembly Passes Multiple Healthcare Bills Wisconsin’s Assembly passed multiple healthcare-related bills with broad bipartisan support. One ( AB 43 ) would allow pharmacists to prescribe birth control to those 18 and older. It now moves to the Senate. Another measure approved by the Assembly ( SB 4 ) would exempt direct primary care, where patients pay monthly or annual fees to access primary care services,...

May 20, 2025

States Look to Tax Social Media

A nightmare may be coming to life for social media companies in Minnesota. There, Democrats in the state Legislature have embraced a pioneering bill, SB 3197 , which seeks to levy the nation’s first tax on social media apps. The bill would require social media companies to pay the state a monthly fee, depending on the number of Minnesotans who use their platforms. A platform with 100,000 or fewer Minnesota...

May 13, 2025

First States OK Crypto Reserves, AL’s Genetic Data Theft Bill & More

NH, AZ Authorize Crypto Reserves Two months after President Trump signed an executive order establishing a federal strategic bitcoin reserve and digital asset stockpile, New Hampshire and Arizona have become the first two states to enact legislation providing for the creation of their own cryptocurrency reserves. The bill ( HB 302 ) signed by New Hampshire Gov. Kelly Ayotte (R) allows the state’s treasurer to...

May 13, 2025

Insurance Worries about Condo Bill Passed in FL

FL Condo Bill Raises Insurance Concerns Florida lawmakers passed a bill ( HB 913 ) intended to provide condominium owners some relief from the high cost of bringing properties up to code, as a result of strict new rules imposed on them after the deadly Surfside condo collapse in 2021. But the version of HB 913 that was ultimately approved by state lawmakers has some in the condo insurance community worried that it could...

May 13, 2025

State Lawmakers Shift from PBMs to PSAOs in Fight Against High Drug Costs

State Lawmakers Shift from PBMs to PSAOs in Fight Against High Drug Costs For a while now state legislators have targeted pharmacy benefit managers, or PBMs, for contributing to the high cost of prescription drugs . But recently lawmakers have set their sights on a new culprit: pharmacy services administrative organizations, or PSAOs , which help independent pharmacies negotiate with drug wholesalers. An October...

May 06, 2025

Proposed Social Media Ban for Minors in TX, Data Privacy Lawsuit Against Roku in MI & More

TX Taking Tougher Stance on Social Media for Kids The Texas House passed a bill ( HB 186 ) that would ban social media accounts for anyone under the age of 18. The measure would also allow parents to request the deletion of their child’s social media account and require social media companies to comply within 10 days. The House also passed HB 499 , which would require social media platforms to carry warning labels...

May 06, 2025

IA Addresses Shortage of Birth Centers & AL Advancing Higher Age Threshold for Consent to Medical Care

IA Enacts Law Addressing Shortage of Birth Centers Iowa Gov. Kim Reynolds (R) signed a bill ( HF 887 ) exempting freestanding birth centers from having to obtain a certificate of need from the state’s Department of Inspections, Appeals and Licensing to operate. Birthing services are currently in short supply in the state, with at least 41 hospitals, mostly in rural areas, having closed their labor and delivery...

May 06, 2025

Will Other States Follow Arkansas in Allowing Parents to Sue Social Media Companies?

On April 21 Arkansas Gov. Sarah Huckabee Sanders (R) signed into law a bill giving parents the right to sue social media companies for harms caused by their content. The measure, SB 612 , establishes a private right of action for parents to sue social media companies “that knowingly or willfully contribute” to harmful behaviors by minors through the content they publish. More specifically, SB 612 allows...

April 29, 2025

Bill to Limit Auto Accident Damages for ‘Unauthorized Aliens’ in LA

‘Unauthorized Alien’ Limits Among Trio of Auto Insurance Proposals Under Consideration in LA House Three auto insurance bills cleared the Louisiana House Committee on Civil Law and Procedure last month. One of them ( HB 436 ) would prohibit “unauthorized aliens” from receiving general damages, including compensation for pain and suffering, in auto accident cases, although they could still receive...

April 29, 2025

Social Media Bill Override Attempt in CO, Social Media Warning Label Bill on Move in CA & More

Social Media Bill Dodges Veto Override in CO Colorado Gov. Jared Polis’ (D) veto of a social media bill ( SB 86 ) survived an override attempt. The state’s Democrat-controlled Senate voted 29-6 in favor of overriding the measure, which would have required large social media companies to remove accounts involved with the selling of guns or drugs or with sex trafficking or the sexual exploitation of minors...

April 29, 2025

Medical Debt Legislation in WA, VT & Psilocybin Legalization Bill in IA

WA Enacts Law Keeping Medical Debt Off Credit Reports Washington Gov. Bob Ferguson (D) signed a bill ( SB 5480 ) prohibiting collection agencies from reporting unpaid medical debt to credit agencies. The measure, which takes effect on July 27, is similar to a federal rule approved by the Biden administration but placed on hold by the Trump administration. ( WASHINGTON STATE STANDARD ) VT Passes Medical Debt Bill ...

April 29, 2025

States Turn to Tech to Help Address High Maternal Mortality

In 2022, there were about 22 maternal deaths for every 100,000 live births in the United States. That’s the highest rate of maternal deaths among high-income nations worldwide. That sobering statistic seems to have caught the attention of policymakers across the country as several states have turned in recent months to technology to improve maternal health. In February Arkansas Gov. Sarah Huckabee Sanders (R...

April 22, 2025

Implications for Insurance Industry in FL’s Own DOGE Effort

DOGE-Like Effort in FL Could Impact Insurance Industry The wave of housecleaning that’s swept through the federal government courtesy of Elon Musk's Department of Government Efficiency appears to have reached the state government of Florida. A bill ( HB 1461 ) advanced by a Florida House Budget Committee subcommittee last week would do away with at least 22 state boards responsible for overseeing licensing...

April 22, 2025

OH Social Media Access Law Permanently Blocked

Judge Permanently Blocks OH Social Media Access Law A federal judge issued an injunction permanently blocking an Ohio law that requires parental consent for those under the age of 16 to have a social media account. Although U.S. District Judge Algenon Marbley praised the state for seeking to protect minors from harm, he said the Ohio law, enacted in 2023, violated the First Amendment. He compared it to a law passed...

April 22, 2025

State Lawmakers Pivot from PBMs to PSAOs in Ongoing Effort to Control Drug Prices

State Lawmakers Target PSAOs After targeting pharmacy benefit managers for years for contributing to the high cost of prescription drugs, state lawmakers have begun setting their sights on pharmacy services administrative organizations, or PSAOs, which help independent pharmacies negotiate with drug wholesalers. Virginia enacted a bill ( HB 2375 ) last month that requires PSAOs to report their reimbursement rates. Arkansas...

April 22, 2025

Consumer Data Deletion Movement Brewing in Statehouses?

Two years ago, California enacted first-of-its-kind legislation allowing residents to demand that data brokers delete the personal information the brokers have collected about them. Known as the California Delete Act, SB 362 , by Sen. Josh Becker (D), provided for the data equivalent of the do-not-call registry . The bill called for the creation of a website where Californians could submit a single request to have their...

April 15, 2025

MN’s Proposed Social Media App Tax, AR’s Social Media Private Right of Action Bill & More

MN Considering Taxing Social Media Apps Minnesota’s Senate Taxes Committee heard a bill ( SB 3197 ) last week that would make the state the first in the nation to tax social media apps. The measure would require social media platforms with between 100,000 and 500,000 Minnesota-based users to pay 10 cents per user per month; platforms with between 500,000 and 1 million Minnesota users to pay $40,000 per month plus...

April 15, 2025

AR Ban on PBM Operation of Pharmacies Goes to Gov, Legal Challenge to SD Drug Discount Law & More

AR Lawmakers Pass Bill Banning PBMs from Running Pharmacies The Arkansas legislature passed a bill ( HB 1150 ) that would make the state the first in the nation to prohibit pharmacy benefit managers from operating retail pharmacies. A spokesman for Gov. Sarah Sanders (R) declined to say whether she would sign the measure. ( TALK BUSINESS & POLITICS , STAT ) AbbVie Challenges New SD Drug Discount Law AbbVie Inc...

April 15, 2025

State Lawmakers Wrestle with Predictive Pricing

The days of simply setting a price for goods or services and waiting for customers to accept it are gone. Thanks to predictive pricing , businesses of all sorts can now use data analytics, machine learning and algorithms to anticipate market demand and adjust prices in real time, a la the airline industry. The technology is a boon to businesses, as it allows them to optimize their prices and maximize profits. Recent...

March 25, 2025

‘Predictive Pricing’ Big Concern in CA & More

‘Predictive Pricing’ Top Priority for CA Lawmakers Predictive pricing, a practice involving the use of artificial intelligence to set prices for customers based on factors like the websites they visit or the places they live instead of supply and demand, has emerged as one of the top technology-related issues in California’s Legislature this session. Lawmakers in the state have introduced five bills...

March 25, 2025

More State Paid Leave Laws Ahead & More

Patchwork of Paid Leave Laws Set to Continue There’s currently no federal law requiring paid leave. The federal Family and Medical Leave Act of 1993 only requires employers to provide unpaid time off. But 19 states have laws requiring paid sick leave, as well as 17 cities and four counties, according to the non-profit National Partnership for Women and Families. In addition, 13 states require some type of paid...

March 25, 2025

States Passing Laws to Prevent AI Discrimination in Workplace

While artificial intelligence has been lauded the world over for its potentially transformative impact on, well, just about everything , state legislators across the country have been concerned about its potential for harm , especially in the workplace . New State Workplace Discrimination Laws In May 2024, Colorado lawmakers approved SB 205 , which proposed the nation’s first comprehensive law to broadly regulate...