Alva Review-Courier -

This was the last week for us to vote on bills sent over from the House of Representatives. More than 100 House bills were voted on between Monday and the Thursday deadline, including some of my own.

I am the Senate principal author for House Bill 2241, dealing with removal and relocation costs of equipment belonging to municipally owned utilities. Under HB 2241, if right-of-way work requires the Oklahoma Department of Transportation (ODOT) to remove and relocate equipment belonging to a city-owned utility in a town with a population less than 10,000 people, ODOT would have to cover the cost. This is a problem that Seiling and Guymon have run into, so I’m glad we’re working toward getting this bill across the finish line this session. HB 2241 passed with overwhelming support and now returns to the House for further consideration.

I also won approval for HB 1590, aimed at modernizing Oklahoma’s 911 system, moving our state from a decades-old analog system to digital technology. This change will decrease response times, more accurately identify caller locations, and better coordinate responses.

The measure now returns to the House for consideration of Senate amendments, including one naming the bill the Haiden Fleming Memorial Act. Haiden and his family lived in northeastern Oklahoma very close to a county line, and when they called 911 after the 22-year-old suffered a cardiac emergency, there were difficulties with 911 and emergency responders who were in different coverage areas. His family hoped naming this bill for their son would draw attention to the need to modernize 911 in our state.

Earlier this week, I was among about 18 legislators, from both chambers and both parties, who held a press conference along with Insurance Commissioner Glen Mulready addressing misinformation CVS Caremark has been sending out to Oklahomans telling them they could no longer get 90-day prescription refills. This out-of-state company is a multi-billion dollar pharmacy benefit manager (PBM) that has been fined millions of dollars for violating state laws aimed at protecting the rights of Oklahoma consumers.

We’ve worked hard to enact legislation protecting the rights of Oklahomans to choose which pharmacy they want to use to keep these PBMs from limiting them to major national chains instead of local drug stores. We’ve also worked to keep PBMs from preventing pharmacists from sharing information about how customers can actually save money on prescriptions. Again, anyone who tries to tell you that because of Oklahoma law, you can’t get a 90-day refill is either misinformed or deliberately lying to you. We will continue working with Commissioner Mulready to protect the rights and interests of our citizens.

Closer to home, I think we are all just thanking the good Lord this week for the rain. This drought has been beyond tough, but so are we. Keep those prayers coming.

It is my honor to serve you in the Oklahoma State Senate. You can reach me by calling 405-521-5626 or emailing [email protected].