Texas Pharmacies Must Arbitrate Reimbursement Suit in California

Twenty pharmacies must proceed to arbitration to tackle a reimbursement dispute from pharmacy benefit manager OptumRx, a Texas appeals court ruled Tuesday.

Although the pharmacies’ contracts with OptumRX call for arbitration to take place in California, a Texas court can ensure it happens, the Court of Appeals, Fourteenth District said.

While neither federal nor Texas arbitration laws authorize Texas district courts to force arbitration outside of the state, they can’t stop the Texas Constitution “from providing such a basis,” the unanimous court said.

The decision overturns a trial court ruling dismissing OptumRX’s bid to compel out-of-state arbitration in ...