TALLAHASSEE — Attorney General James Uthmeier issued a Civil Investigative Demand to CVS Health Corporation and its Caremark pharmacy benefit manager, launching a probe into whether the company steers patients to its own pharmacies, shortchanges independent competitors and inflates prescription costs for Florida families.

“Florida families and seniors deserve access to affordable medication and real pharmacy choices — not a system rigged by one giant corporation that may favor its own stores and squeeze out competitors,” said Attorney General Uthmeier. “This investigation will uncover the truth and protect fair competition for all Floridians.”

The investigation targets a company that operates on both sides of the pharmacy counter. CVS Health owns Caremark, one of the three largest pharmacy benefit managers in the country, which together handle about 80 percent of U.S. prescriptions. CVS simultaneously operates more than 9,000 retail pharmacies nationwide, including roughly 800 in Florida — a vertical integration that the attorney general’s office says raises serious self-preferencing concerns.

The Civil Investigative Demand requires CVS to produce thousands of documents and sworn testimony covering reimbursement rates, pharmacy contracts, patient steering practices, audits, rebates, differential treatment of CVS-owned versus independent stores, and expansion plans. The probe specifically examines whether CVS/Caremark reimburses its affiliated stores more generously than independent pharmacies for identical prescriptions, imposes burdensome audits that claw back payments, and enforces restrictive contracts that threaten small businesses. Such practices allegedly contribute to pharmacy closures and “pharmacy deserts,” leaving families and seniors with fewer options and higher costs.

Agency for Health Care Administration Secretary Shevaun Harris backed the investigation. “Floridians expect a health care system that works for them, not against them,” Harris said. “The Attorney General’s action is an important step toward that future, and AHCA is proud to stand alongside this effort to ensure accountability of PBMs.”

Incoming Florida Pharmacy Association President Aneesh Lakhani offered a sharper assessment. “The Attorney General’s action today sends a clear and necessary message: the era of unchecked PBM abuse in Florida is over,” Lakhani said. “My patients deserve better. Florida deserves better. The system wasn’t broken, PBMs broke the system. We will not rest until they are held fully accountable.”

CVS Health must comply with the Civil Investigative Demand by July 28, 2026.