At a time when the overall health care of Americans is at risk from economic factors, many employer groups and health plans are making changes to their pharmacy benefit programs that have the potential to compromise patient care and impact California's economy negatively.

"We are receiving calls on a weekly basis from community pharmacies telling us of patients who are upset by the changes to their pharmacy benefit plans," states Lynn Rolston, Chief Executive Officer of the California Pharmacists Association. "Most often, changes to the plan require that routine medications be filled by mail-order pharmacies and can no longer be filled at a pharmacy of the patient's choice. Not only are patients upset at having their choice of pharmacy provider taken away, they are at a greater risk of medication complications without direct pharmacist oversight…