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Professional Services Contract with CaremarkPCS Health for pharmacy benefit management services
Pharmacy benefit manager: CaremarkPCS Health, L.L.C. (CVS Health). Term January 1, 2017 to December 31, 2021. Ordinance 2016-09-08-0692, adopted September 8, 2016. Five year term from January 1, 2017 through December 31, 2021 with a two year renewal option. The contract names Exhibits A through F but the fee, discount and rebate exhibits are not in the posted PDF.
No page of the posted contract is redacted. Exhibits A through F, including the fee, discount and rebate exhibits, are named in the contract but were not posted with it. The authorizing ordinance (3 pages) is a separate document in the file list.
The rubric
Clause by clause
Each item quotes the contract and cites the page it came from. Items whose pages are redacted are marked unclear and left out of the score.
Fiduciary duty and loyalty
Weight 7 of 100, model section Section 2.4
Contradicts the model
All five models reached this verdict. Section 2.5(B) on page 11 has the vendor accept a fiduciary role only for initial claim adjudication and appeals, and then states that for everything else it is not the plan administrator, not a named fiduciary, has no discretionary authority and is not deemed a fiduciary under ERISA or state law. Formulary placement, MAC pricing and manufacturer money therefore sit outside any duty of loyalty to the city. The model contract published by Mark Cuban and collaborators requires loyalty and care owed solely to the plan across the whole relationship, and page 10 confirms the vendor keeps manufacturer fees, so this is the opposite of the model.
VENDOR agrees to be a fiduciary solely for the purpose of initial Claim adjudication and appeals relating to the coverage of prescription drug benefits.
Page 11Model contract says
The PBM owes duties of loyalty and care solely to the plan and its members, must disclose all direct and indirect compensation and every economic conflict, and must disgorge anything retained in breach without the plan proving damages.
Without a loyalty duty the PBM is free to put its own affiliates and revenue ahead of the plan when it exercises discretion over formularies, networks and pricing.
Model votes: Kimi K3 bad, Grok 4.6 bad, GPT 5.6 Sol bad, Claude Opus 5 bad, Gemini 3.1 Pro bad
Full disclosure of compensation and conflicts
Weight 6 of 100, model section Sections 2.4, 2.6
Weaker than the model
Three of five models read this as partial; Gemini 3.1 Pro called it missing because no clause requires a full compensation inventory or an officer certification, and Kimi K3 called it bad because the disclosure mainly authorizes retention. The disclosure of manufacturer fees on pages 9 and 10 does tell the city that the vendor and its affiliates take manufacturer administrative fees of one to four percent of wholesale acquisition cost across the book of business, plus purchase discounts at affiliated pharmacies, and section 21.3 on page 28 warrants that no contingent fee was paid to win the contract. Nothing requires the amounts actually earned on city claims to be reported, no affiliate ownership touching claims is listed, and no named officer certifies quarterly or annually. The subject is addressed, so the majority verdict of partial stands, but it is far weaker than the model.
may receive and retain fees or other compensation from pharmaceutical companies for services rendered and property provided to pharmaceutical companies, including, without limitation, administrative fees that range between one percent (1%) and four percent (4%) of the Wholesale Acquisition Cost
Page 10Model contract says
All PBM and related-entity compensation, affiliate ownership touching plan claims, and payments to consultants or brokers are disclosed, and a named officer certifies quarterly and annually that everything has been disclosed and remitted.
Hidden revenue streams are the main way plans overpay. Officer certification puts a name on the line.
Model votes: Kimi K3 bad, Grok 4.6 partial, GPT 5.6 Sol partial, Claude Opus 5 partial, Gemini 3.1 Pro missing
Ownership and affiliate disclosure exhibit
Weight 3 of 100, model section Proposed Exhibit A-5
Not addressed
Three of five models read this as missing; Claude Opus 5 and GPT 5.6 Sol called it partial because section 14.3 on page 21 requires sixty days notice of a change in ownership interest greater than fifty percent or a change of control. That notice clause is real, but it is not an exhibit listing owners, parents, subsidiaries, affiliates, group purchasing organizations, rebate aggregators or mail and specialty pharmacies, and nothing requires a refreshed list within thirty days of a change. The exhibit list on page 32 names performance guarantees, fees, the business associate agreement, SBEDA, the request for proposal and the proposal, not an ownership schedule, and the conflict of interest article on pages 27 and 28 concerns city officers and employees. The contract refers to affiliates and vendor owned pharmacies repeatedly without naming any of them, so the majority verdict stands.
No verbatim quote is available for this clause.
Model contract says
A signed exhibit lists every owner, parent, subsidiary, affiliate, group purchasing organization, rebate aggregator, mail order pharmacy and specialty pharmacy tied to the PBM, and the PBM must refresh it within 30 days of any change in ownership or control.
The model contract has no ownership exhibit, and the Nautilus Health Institute review of version 3.5 scored conflict of interest 70 of 100 for that gap. A plan cannot police affiliate pricing, steering or GPO pass through if it does not know which companies are affiliates.
Model votes: Kimi K3 missing, Grok 4.6 missing, GPT 5.6 Sol partial, Claude Opus 5 partial, Gemini 3.1 Pro missing
Definitions that close loopholes
Weight 5 of 100, model section Section 1
Contradicts the model
All five models reached this verdict. Section 1.12 on page 2 defines Rebates by label as formulary rebates, base and market share, collected as a group purchasing organization on brand drugs. Page 10 then removes fees, other compensation and concurrent or retrospective purchase discounts from the term and assigns them exclusively to the vendor or its affiliates. Brand and generic status are whatever the vendor identifies from Medi-Span on pages 1 and 2, the MAC list is a price the vendor establishes and amends, and specialty on page 3 is what the vendor uses. These are the relabeling loopholes that the definitions section of the model contract published by Mark Cuban and collaborators is written to close.
The term “Rebates” as used in this CONTRACT does not include the fees, compensation, and concurrent or retrospective discounts associated with the purchase price of products described in this Section which belong exclusively to VENDOR or its affiliates.
Page 10Model contract says
Rebate, manufacturer revenue, affiliate, specialty, generic and pharmacy are defined by economic function, not by label, so value cannot be relabeled (for example as fees) to escape pass-through or guarantees.
Most PBM revenue leakage happens inside definitions. A narrow definition of rebate lets fees, grants and administrative payments stay with the PBM.
Model votes: Kimi K3 bad, Grok 4.6 bad, GPT 5.6 Sol bad, Claude Opus 5 bad, Gemini 3.1 Pro bad
100% pass-through of manufacturer revenue
Weight 11 of 100, model section Section 4
Contradicts the model
All five models reached this verdict. Page 9 promises to remit the Rebates received on city claims each quarter under Exhibit B, and Exhibit B is not in the posted document, so neither the share nor the timing can be read. What can be read is decisive on its own: page 10 lets the vendor and its affiliates receive and retain manufacturer administrative fees of one to four percent of wholesale acquisition cost and affiliate purchase discounts, and declares that this money belongs exclusively to the vendor and is not a Rebate. Page 9 also waives any interest or time value on rebate money and lets the vendor delay remittance on termination. That contradicts the one hundred percent pass through of all manufacturer revenue in the model contract, whatever Exhibit B says about the defined Rebates.
The term “Rebates” as used in this CONTRACT does not include the fees, compensation, and concurrent or retrospective discounts associated with the purchase price of products described in this Section which belong exclusively to VENDOR or its affiliates.
Page 10Model contract says
One hundred percent of manufacturer revenue of every kind is paid to the plan, quarterly within 30 days of quarter end, with only a closed list of excludable claims.
Rebates and other manufacturer payments are the largest dollar item in most PBM contracts. Anything less than 100% of everything is money left with the PBM.
Model votes: Kimi K3 bad, Grok 4.6 bad, GPT 5.6 Sol bad, Claude Opus 5 bad, Gemini 3.1 Pro bad
Affiliate pharmacy pricing at acquisition cost
Weight 5 of 100, model section Section 3.2
Contradicts the model
Three of five models read this as bad; Gemini 3.1 Pro called it missing because no clause sets acquisition cost pricing, and Kimi K3 called it unclear because the rates would sit in the withheld Exhibit B. The pages are readable and the body text addresses the subject, so the unclear vote is overruled under rule 3 and the majority stands. Page 4 runs claims at the vendor's own mail and specialty pharmacies through the same lowest of discounted rate, usual and customary and MAC formula as retail, and page 10 states that purchase discounts on products bought by vendor affiliated dispensing pharmacies belong exclusively to the vendor or its affiliates. That is a retained affiliate margin in plain words, the harm the acquisition cost clause in the model contract published by Mark Cuban and collaborators exists to remove. Page 18 adds that the city funds payments to the vendor's affiliated pharmacies.
In addition, VENDOR or its affiliates may receive concurrent or retrospective discounts from pharmaceutical companies which are attributable to or based on products purchased by VENDOR affiliated dispensing pharmacies.
Page 10Model contract says
Claims dispensed by PBM-owned or economically related pharmacies (mail, specialty, retail) are invoiced at net acquisition cost plus a stated dispensing fee, with no retained margin and a documentation default if records are not produced.
Owned pharmacies are where PBMs earn the most margin. Pricing them at cost removes the incentive to steer patients into the PBM's own channels.
Model votes: Kimi K3 unclear, Grok 4.6 bad, GPT 5.6 Sol bad, Claude Opus 5 bad, Gemini 3.1 Pro missing
Benchmark ceiling and cheapest lawful option
Weight 3 of 100, model section Section 3.3
Weaker than the model
Three of five models read this as partial; Gemini 3.1 Pro and Kimi K3 called it missing because a lesser of clause is not a published external benchmark. Page 4 does give a claim by claim test: the ingredient cost is the lowest of the discounted rate, the pharmacy's reported usual and customary price and the vendor MAC rate. That stops the plan paying more than the pharmacy's own shelf price at a network pharmacy, which is a ceiling of a kind and is checked on every claim rather than on average. It is not the model standard because the benchmark is the pharmacy's self reported price rather than a transparent published cash price, and mail and specialty claims run on rates in the withheld Exhibit B with no stated ceiling. The majority verdict stands.
Claim costs shall consist of the adjudicated ingredient cost (which shall be the lowest of the discounted rate, the Participating Pharmacy’s reported U&C price, if applicable, and the VENDOR MAC rate, if applicable), plus the applicable dispensing fee
Page 4Model contract says
Plan claim cost can never exceed a published benchmark, for example the transparent cash price at a benchmark site, in any channel and for any drug, and the ceiling is checked claim by claim rather than on average.
A ceiling protects the plan from paying more through the contract than the public can pay in cash, and a claim level test stops a favorable average from hiding individual overcharges.
Model votes: Kimi K3 missing, Grok 4.6 partial, GPT 5.6 Sol partial, Claude Opus 5 partial, Gemini 3.1 Pro missing
Cash price protection and deductible credit
Weight 3 of 100, model section Section 3.4
Weaker than the model
Three of five models read this as partial; Gemini 3.1 Pro and Kimi K3 called it missing because most of what the item asks for is absent. Pages 4 and 5 require network pharmacies to collect from the member the lowest of the copayment, the discounted price, the vendor MAC rate or the pharmacy's usual and customary price, so a member should not pay more at the counter than the pharmacy's own cash price. That is the first half of the model clause. There is no promise that a cash purchase made outside the benefit counts toward the deductible or out of pocket maximum, and accumulator adjustments are not mentioned anywhere in the text. The subject is addressed in part, so the majority verdict of partial stands with reduced confidence.
shall collect from the Plan Member the lowest of the applicable co-payment, the discounted price, the VENDOR MAC rate, if applicable, or the Participating
Page 4Model contract says
A member never pays more than the pharmacy cash price or the cheapest lawful price, every cash purchase counts toward the deductible and out of pocket maximum, and no accumulator adjustment is applied against member assistance unless the sponsor elects it in writing.
Members routinely pay more through the plan than the cash price on the shelf, and a cash purchase that does not count toward the deductible punishes the member for finding the cheaper price.
Model votes: Kimi K3 missing, Grok 4.6 partial, GPT 5.6 Sol partial, Claude Opus 5 partial, Gemini 3.1 Pro missing
MAC list governance
Weight 5 of 100, model section Section 3.5
Contradicts the model
Four of five models read this as bad; Claude Opus 5 called it partial because the city receives a copy of the list before signing and on reasonable request. Section 1.9 on page 2 makes MAC a unit price the vendor establishes and amends from time to time, on a list that is specific to the city and expressly not the federal list. There is no update schedule, no pharmacy appeal path with deadlines, and nothing says the list used to bill the city is the same list used to pay pharmacies. A vendor controlled, client specific MAC list is the mechanism the model contract published by Mark Cuban and collaborators names as the classic spread tool, so the majority verdict stands.
“Maximum Allowable Cost” or “MAC” means the unit price that has been established by VENDOR for a multi-source drug (i.e., a drug with more than two sources) included on the MAC drug list applicable to CITY, which list may be amended from time to time by VENDOR in maintaining its generic pricing program.
Page 2Model contract says
A single MAC list applies to both what the plan pays and what pharmacies are paid, it is disclosed, updated on a schedule, and pharmacies have an appeals path with defined timelines.
Two MAC lists (one for the plan, one for pharmacies) is the classic spread pricing mechanism.
Model votes: Kimi K3 bad, Grok 4.6 bad, GPT 5.6 Sol bad, Claude Opus 5 partial, Gemini 3.1 Pro bad
No spread pricing
Weight 9 of 100, model section Sections 2.5, 3.1, 3.5
Contradicts the model
Two of five models read this as bad, two as missing, and Kimi K3 voted unclear because the discount rates sit in the withheld Exhibit B. The pages that decide the question are readable, so the unclear vote is overruled under rule 3, leaving a tie between bad and missing that the rule sends back to the text. On re-read, the contract is not merely silent: page 4 defines what the city pays as a vendor set discounted rate, the pharmacy's usual and customary price or the vendor MAC rate, page 2 makes that MAC a list applicable to the city that the vendor maintains for its generic pricing program, page 5 says pharmacies are paid under their own network agreements with the vendor, and page 15 bars the city from auditing those agreements. The city's price and the pharmacy's payment are set on separate tracks and the contract blocks the one check that would reveal a difference, which permits retained spread in every channel. Confidence is low because no sentence says the vendor keeps the difference.
CITY acknowledges that, except as expressly set forth herein, it shall not be entitled to audit agreements with vendors, pharmaceutical companies, Participating Pharmacies or other providers of products or services to VENDOR as part of a Claims audit.
Page 15Model contract says
The plan pays exactly what the pharmacy is paid plus a disclosed administrative fee. The PBM retains no difference between the two, in any channel.
Spread pricing is an undisclosed markup on every claim. Eliminating it is the single clearest test of a transparent contract.
Model votes: Kimi K3 unclear, Grok 4.6 bad, GPT 5.6 Sol missing, Claude Opus 5 bad, Gemini 3.1 Pro missing
GPO and purchasing entity pass-through
Weight 4 of 100, model section Section 5
Contradicts the model
All five models reached this verdict. Page 9 has the city authorize the vendor to contract with drug makers as a group purchasing organization for the plan, and page 10 then assigns the fees, compensation and concurrent or retrospective purchase discounts collected in that role exclusively to the vendor or its affiliates. The non interference clause on page 10 also bars the city from seeking rebates or discounts from any manufacturer or third party on its own for the whole term and calls a breach material. The model contract published by Mark Cuban and collaborators sends purchasing entity revenue to the plan on disclosed drivers; here it is kept.
In addition, VENDOR or its affiliates may receive concurrent or retrospective discounts from pharmaceutical companies which are attributable to or based on products purchased by VENDOR affiliated dispensing pharmacies.
Page 10Model contract says
Purchase discounts, volume credits and supplier payments received by the PBM or any related purchasing entity (including offshore GPOs) flow to the plan, allocated on disclosed drivers.
PBMs moved much of their manufacturer revenue into affiliated GPOs after rebate scrutiny increased. A contract that only covers rebates misses this.
Model votes: Kimi K3 bad, Grok 4.6 bad, GPT 5.6 Sol bad, Claude Opus 5 bad, Gemini 3.1 Pro bad
Plan sponsor controls the formulary
Weight 4 of 100, model section Section 6
Contradicts the model
All five models reached this verdict. The city adopted the vendor's own Performance Drug List as its formulary, and section 1.10 on page 2 says that list is created, maintained and amended by the vendor and approved by the vendor's own committee. Page 8 gives the city thirty days notice before a drug is added, removed or moved between tiers, and page 9 gives quarterly notice of changes to the specialty formulary, but notice is not approval and the city has no right to reject a change or to receive a lowest net cost analysis. The party that collects the rebates decides which drugs are preferred, which is what the formulary section of the model contract published by Mark Cuban and collaborators exists to prevent.
VENDOR shall manage at its own cost the CVS Health PDL, as in effect from time to time, which the CITY has adopted as part of the Plan design and as CITY’s formulary.
Page 8Model contract says
The plan sponsor approves the formulary and every change, receives lowest-net-cost analysis, and gets utilization management outcomes by drug each quarter.
A PBM-controlled formulary can favor high-list-price, high-rebate drugs that cost the plan more overall.
Model votes: Kimi K3 bad, Grok 4.6 bad, GPT 5.6 Sol bad, Claude Opus 5 bad, Gemini 3.1 Pro bad
Lowest net cost standard and book of business comparison
Weight 3 of 100, model section Section 6
Not addressed
Four of five models read this as missing; GPT 5.6 Sol called it partial because page 8 lists cost effectiveness among the reasons the vendor may change the drug list. That list on page 8 is a menu of things the vendor may consider, among other things, and it binds the vendor to nothing for this plan. There is no lowest net cost standard, no annual comparison of the city's results against the vendor's book of business, and no duty to disclose when a drug sits above a cheaper equivalent. The performance standards on pages 13 and 14 measure service accuracy and the audit article on pages 14 to 17 covers claims and rebates, so the majority verdict stands.
No verbatim quote is available for this clause.
Model contract says
Formulary decisions must meet a lowest net cost standard for this plan, the PBM delivers an annual comparison against its whole book of business, and any drug placed above a cheaper equivalent is disclosed with the reason.
Rebate driven formularies can favor a high list price drug that returns more rebate but costs the plan more after the rebate. A stated standard and a book of business comparison make that trade visible.
Model votes: Kimi K3 missing, Grok 4.6 missing, GPT 5.6 Sol partial, Claude Opus 5 missing, Gemini 3.1 Pro missing
Pharmacy network protections and anti-steering
Weight 7 of 100, model section Section 7
Not addressed
Three of five models read this as missing; Claude Opus 5 and Gemini 3.1 Pro called it bad because page 5 gives the vendor the sole right to audit participating pharmacies and to recover audit discrepancies from them. That clause is real and it does mean pharmacies face recoupment after adjudication, but it governs billing errors under the vendor's network agreements rather than authorizing steering or volume based pay. Pages 4 to 7 describe independent participating pharmacies and the vendor's own mail and specialty pharmacies without any anti steering promise, any willing pharmacy clause, any bar on volume conditioned reimbursement or any statement that claims are final when adjudicated. The subject the model clause covers is not addressed, so the majority verdict stands.
No verbatim quote is available for this clause.
Model contract says
Claims are final when adjudicated (no retroactive clawbacks), reimbursement is not conditioned on volume, the PBM may not steer claims into its own pharmacies, and any willing pharmacy may participate at the plan's terms.
Steering and clawbacks push independent pharmacies out and route patients to PBM-owned channels, reducing choice and often raising cost.
Model votes: Kimi K3 missing, Grok 4.6 missing, GPT 5.6 Sol missing, Claude Opus 5 bad, Gemini 3.1 Pro bad
Most favored pricing and market check
Weight 3 of 100, model section Section 8
Not addressed
All five models reached this verdict. The consideration article on page 17 points to Exhibit B, the term article on pages 18 and 19 sets five years with a two year option and no repricing trigger, and page 13 allows performance standards to be adjusted once a year by mutual agreement, which is not a market check. Nothing promises the city pricing as good as comparable clients and there is no meet, credit or release remedy. The city's only lever during the term is termination on notice under page 29.
No verbatim quote is available for this clause.
Model contract says
The plan automatically receives pricing at least as good as any comparable client, and can run an annual market check with a meet, credit or release remedy.
Multi-year contracts drift out of market. Without a market check the plan is locked into stale pricing.
Model votes: Kimi K3 missing, Grok 4.6 missing, GPT 5.6 Sol missing, Claude Opus 5 missing, Gemini 3.1 Pro missing
Audit rights, data access and reporting
Weight 6 of 100, model section Section 9
Weaker than the model
Four of five models read this as partial; Gemini 3.1 Pro called it bad because the limits are heavy. The city does have real rights: an annual claims audit and an annual rebate audit on pages 14 and 15, a post termination audit on page 30, annual SOC 1 reports and audited financial statements on page 17, and claims data through an online portal on page 7. Every right is then narrowed: one on site audit per plan year, an auditor who must be mutually acceptable and sign the vendor's confidentiality form, no access to pharmacy or manufacturer agreements, a cap of ten manufacturer contracts in the rebate audit whose terms may not be revealed even to the city, vendor comment on the draft report, and a sample of three hundred claims in the standard timeline on page 16. That is weaker than the model, which gives the plan its own auditor and full data on a schedule, but the rights exist, so the majority verdict stands.
CITY, or a mutually acceptable independent third party retained by CITY, may conduct an annual Claims audit and such audit shall be limited to the prior Contract Year of VENDOR data that directly relates to Claims billings.
Page 15Model contract says
The plan may audit with its own auditor, receives full claims-level and financial data on a schedule without asking, has pre-adjudication claims access, and no data is withheld as proprietary.
You cannot enforce what you cannot see. Audit and data rights are how every other clause gets verified.
Model votes: Kimi K3 partial, Grok 4.6 partial, GPT 5.6 Sol partial, Claude Opus 5 partial, Gemini 3.1 Pro bad
Plan sponsor owns all plan data
Weight 4 of 100, model section Sections 9.4, 9.5
Weaker than the model
Three of five models read this as partial; GPT 5.6 Sol and Gemini 3.1 Pro called it bad because the vendor may sell deidentified plan data. Section 8.1 on page 19 gives the city ownership of information produced solely and exclusively for it, and section 22.5 on page 29 says all files are city property and must be delivered at termination, which is a genuine ownership clause. The same section 8.1 then reserves the vendor's trade secret rights inside that information and lets the vendor use, adapt and sell deidentified claims and eligibility data and share it with data integration firms, and page 29 lets the vendor scrub its confidential information from files sent to a successor. Ownership is present but the reuse ban the model contract requires is absent, so the majority verdict of partial stands.
Claims, as well as eligibility information which is deidentified in accordance with HIPAA and other applicable law, and which is not identifiable on a CITY or Plan member basis, may be used, disclosed, reproduced, adapted or sold by VENDOR only as allowed by federal or state law.
Page 19Model contract says
The plan sponsor is the sole owner of claims, eligibility, accumulator, rebate and every derived data set, the PBM delivers it in machine readable form on request, and the PBM may not reuse, license or sell it.
Data ownership decides who can switch vendors, run an audit or check a guarantee. A PBM that owns or licenses plan data can charge for it, withhold it at termination, or resell it.
Model votes: Kimi K3 partial, Grok 4.6 partial, GPT 5.6 Sol bad, Claude Opus 5 partial, Gemini 3.1 Pro bad
Performance guarantees with real remedies
Weight 2 of 100, model section Section 10
Weaker than the model
Two of five models read this as partial, GPT 5.6 Sol called it bad, and Gemini 3.1 Pro and Kimi K3 voted unclear because the guarantee schedule is in Exhibit A, which is not in the posted document. The body text on pages 13 and 14 is readable and settles the direction on its own, so under rule 3 the unclear votes are overruled by the substantive verdicts and the median of partial, partial and bad is partial. Page 13 says only city claims are used to measure claims operations, that penalties are settled once a year at the year end reconciliation, that the amounts at risk are the city's exclusive financial remedies, and that the total at risk is $175,000; page 14 takes any amount due off the vendor's invoice within sixty days. Guarantees exist and are plan specific, but they are annual, capped and exclusive rather than quarterly and dollar for dollar, so this is weaker than the model. Confidence is held down because the metrics themselves cannot be read.
With respect to the aspects of VENDOR’S performance addressed in Exhibit A, these amounts at risk are CITY’S exclusive financial remedies. The Total Dollars at risk will be $175,000 as set forth in Exhibit A.
Page 13Model contract says
Guarantees are measured quarterly on plan-specific data, reconciled in cash, and shortfalls are paid dollar for dollar rather than as capped credits.
Guarantees that are capped or measured on book-of-business data rarely pay out.
Model votes: Kimi K3 unclear, Grok 4.6 partial, GPT 5.6 Sol bad, Claude Opus 5 partial, Gemini 3.1 Pro unclear
Self executing enforcement and two strikes exit
Weight 3 of 100, model section Sections 10, 12.5
Weaker than the model
Four of five models read this as partial; Gemini 3.1 Pro called it missing because there is no liquidated damages clause and no two strikes exit. Section 3.4 on page 14 does make the penalty self executing: any amount at risk comes off the vendor's invoice within sixty days without the city proving damages, and page 27 requires misappropriated funds and system overpayments to be repaid within thirty days. The trigger is the vendor's own report of its failure, the amounts are capped and exclusive under page 13, late reports carry no automatic remedy, and termination for cause on page 29 needs a single thirty day cure with no second strike or regulatory integrity exit. Automatic remedies exist in a limited form, so the majority verdict stands.
Any amount at –risk due because of failure to meet performance standards shall be adjusted from amount due VENDOR no later than 60 days after the reporting by VENDOR of any failure to perform as defined in Exhibit A Performance Guarantees
Page 14Model contract says
Missed guarantees and late reports trigger liquidated damages or automatic credits without the plan having to prove damages, and a second material breach or regulatory integrity failure lets the sponsor terminate without penalty.
A right the plan has to litigate to enforce is rarely enforced. Automatic remedies and a defined exit after a repeat failure change the PBM incentives without a lawsuit.
Model votes: Kimi K3 partial, Grok 4.6 partial, GPT 5.6 Sol partial, Claude Opus 5 partial, Gemini 3.1 Pro missing
Amendments only in writing
Weight 2 of 100, model section Section 11
Weaker than the model
Three of five models read this as partial; GPT 5.6 Sol and Kimi K3 called it good because the amendment clause itself matches the model. Section 13.1 on page 20 and section 31.1 on page 34 do require any amendment to be written, later dated and signed by both parties. The economics can still move without a signed amendment: the MAC definition on page 2 lets the vendor amend the price list from time to time, page 8 lets the vendor add, remove or retier drugs on thirty days notice, page 9 lets it change the specialty formulary with quarterly notice, and page 1 lets it switch the pricing source after notice. The model clause bars economic changes by notice or updated list, so the majority verdict of partial stands.
No amendment, modification or alteration of the terms of this CONTRACT shall be binding unless the same be in writing, dated subsequent to the date hereof and duly executed by the parties hereto.
Page 20Model contract says
No amendment is effective unless signed by both parties; the PBM cannot change economic terms by notice, portal update or updated exhibit.
Unilateral amendment rights let a PBM quietly rewrite pricing mid-term.
Model votes: Kimi K3 good, Grok 4.6 partial, GPT 5.6 Sol good, Claude Opus 5 partial, Gemini 3.1 Pro partial
Termination without penalty
Weight 2 of 100, model section Section 12
Weaker than the model
Four of five models read this as partial; Gemini 3.1 Pro called it good because the convenience exit is real. Section 22.2 on page 29 lets the city cancel without cause on ninety to one hundred twenty days notice, and page 19 lets it stop if funds are not appropriated, which is a genuine termination right. The same section makes the city repay a pro rata share of credits disbursed in the year of termination and of the implementation credit spread over the initial term, page 9 lets the vendor delay rebate remittance after termination, page 29 shifts record transfer costs to the city unless three years of the term are complete, and there is no regulatory integrity trigger. Those exit costs are what the model contract published by Mark Cuban and collaborators forbids, so the majority verdict stands.
This CONTRACT may be canceled by CITY without cause upon written notice, provided such notice specifies an effective date of termination, which shall be not less than 90 calendar days
Page 29Model contract says
The plan may terminate for convenience with reasonable notice and without penalty, earned amounts are never forfeited, and a regulatory integrity event is grounds for termination.
Termination penalties and forfeited rebates are how plans get trapped in bad contracts.
Model votes: Kimi K3 partial, Grok 4.6 partial, GPT 5.6 Sol partial, Claude Opus 5 partial, Gemini 3.1 Pro good
Specialty drug pricing controls
Weight 3 of 100, model section Sections 1.16, 3.2(d)
Weaker than the model
Three of five models read this as partial; Gemini 3.1 Pro called it missing because no rate ceiling or acquisition cost rule appears, and Grok 4.6 called it bad because affiliated pharmacies keep purchase discounts. Section 1.13 on page 3 defines specialty by disease type and handling but leans on what the vendor uses, so the vendor draws the line. The plan runs on the vendor's Advance Control Specialty Formulary on page 9, which the vendor may change with quarterly notice, specialty is the one category exempt from the once a year removal limit on page 8, and specialty prescriptions run through the vendor's own specialty pharmacy under pages 4 and 5. No drug level ceiling and no acquisition cost pricing appears in the body, and any specialty rates would sit in the withheld Exhibit B. The subject is addressed and weaker than the model, so the majority verdict stands.
“Specialty Drugs” means certain pharmaceuticals, biotech or biological drugs, that are Covered Drugs and that are used by VENDOR, that are used in the management of chronic or genetic disease, including but not limited to, injectible, infused, or oral medication, or product that otherwise require special handling.
Page 3Model contract says
Specialty is defined by function, drug-level rates act as a ceiling in every channel, and specialty claims at affiliate pharmacies are priced at acquisition cost.
Specialty drugs are a minority of claims but the majority of spend, and most are dispensed by PBM-owned specialty pharmacies.
Model votes: Kimi K3 partial, Grok 4.6 bad, GPT 5.6 Sol partial, Claude Opus 5 partial, Gemini 3.1 Pro missing
Gag clause (red flag)
Weight 0 of 100, model section Sections 9, 14
Contradicts the model
All five models reached this verdict. Section 33.1 on page 34 makes costs and pricing data confidential information and has the vendor assert that parts of the contract itself are confidential. The Public Information Act clause on page 36 does not free the city: it must notify the vendor of any request, give it time to claim exemptions, not oppose the vendor's effort before the Texas Attorney General or a court, and release only the minimum ordered. Page 15 goes further and bars the rebate auditor from revealing manufacturer contract terms to any third party, including the city. The city may share data with its own consultants and auditors under page 35, but only under separate confidentiality agreements, so pricing, rebate and audit material is treated as proprietary in a way that blocks public disclosure.
The term “Confidential Information” includes, but is not limited to, any information of either CITY or VENDOR (whether oral, written, electronic, visual or fixed in any tangible medium of expression) relating to either party’s inventions, techniques, suppliers, customers and prospective customers, contractors, costs and pricing data, trade secrets
Page 34Model contract says
Nothing in the contract stops the plan from sharing pricing, rebate or performance data with its own advisors, auditors, members, the public or lawmakers, and nothing stops pharmacies from telling patients about cheaper options.
Confidentiality clauses that treat pricing terms as trade secrets are what keep taxpayers from seeing what their government pays. This is why the A&M contract is partly blacked out.
Model votes: Kimi K3 bad, Grok 4.6 bad, GPT 5.6 Sol bad, Claude Opus 5 bad, Gemini 3.1 Pro bad
The council
Five models, every verdict published
The full independent review from each model, the agreement grid, and the synthesis that reconciles them.
Five models from five providers read the full extracted text independently, without seeing one another, and scored every rubric item. Unanimous verdicts stand. Where the council split, the reconciled verdict and the reasoning behind it are written out in the clause by clause section above, and the split is marked here so nobody has to take the resolution on faith. Items a model could not read because of redaction are unclear and excluded from the score. The council agreed outright on 7 of 23 clauses.
Swipe the grid sideways to see every seat and the published verdict.
Clause by clause verdicts by each council model and the published consensus
Clause
Claude Opus 5
Gemini 3.1 Pro
GPT 5.6 Sol
Grok 4.6
Kimi K3
Published
Fiduciary duty and loyalty
Contradicts the model
Contradicts the model
Contradicts the model
Contradicts the model
Contradicts the model
Contradicts the model
Full disclosure of compensation and conflictsSplit
Weaker than the model
Not addressed
Weaker than the model
Weaker than the model
Contradicts the model
Weaker than the model
Ownership and affiliate disclosure exhibitSplit
Weaker than the model
Not addressed
Weaker than the model
Not addressed
Not addressed
Not addressed
Definitions that close loopholes
Contradicts the model
Contradicts the model
Contradicts the model
Contradicts the model
Contradicts the model
Contradicts the model
100% pass-through of manufacturer revenue
Contradicts the model
Contradicts the model
Contradicts the model
Contradicts the model
Contradicts the model
Contradicts the model
Affiliate pharmacy pricing at acquisition costSplit
Contradicts the model
Not addressed
Contradicts the model
Contradicts the model
Redacted or unreadable
Contradicts the model
Benchmark ceiling and cheapest lawful optionSplit
Weaker than the model
Not addressed
Weaker than the model
Weaker than the model
Not addressed
Weaker than the model
Cash price protection and deductible creditSplit
Weaker than the model
Not addressed
Weaker than the model
Weaker than the model
Not addressed
Weaker than the model
MAC list governanceSplit
Weaker than the model
Contradicts the model
Contradicts the model
Contradicts the model
Contradicts the model
Contradicts the model
No spread pricingSplit
Contradicts the model
Not addressed
Not addressed
Contradicts the model
Redacted or unreadable
Contradicts the model
GPO and purchasing entity pass-through
Contradicts the model
Contradicts the model
Contradicts the model
Contradicts the model
Contradicts the model
Contradicts the model
Plan sponsor controls the formulary
Contradicts the model
Contradicts the model
Contradicts the model
Contradicts the model
Contradicts the model
Contradicts the model
Lowest net cost standard and book of business comparisonSplit
Not addressed
Not addressed
Weaker than the model
Not addressed
Not addressed
Not addressed
Pharmacy network protections and anti-steeringSplit
Contradicts the model
Contradicts the model
Not addressed
Not addressed
Not addressed
Not addressed
Most favored pricing and market check
Not addressed
Not addressed
Not addressed
Not addressed
Not addressed
Not addressed
Audit rights, data access and reportingSplit
Weaker than the model
Contradicts the model
Weaker than the model
Weaker than the model
Weaker than the model
Weaker than the model
Plan sponsor owns all plan dataSplit
Weaker than the model
Contradicts the model
Contradicts the model
Weaker than the model
Weaker than the model
Weaker than the model
Performance guarantees with real remediesSplit
Weaker than the model
Redacted or unreadable
Contradicts the model
Weaker than the model
Redacted or unreadable
Weaker than the model
Self executing enforcement and two strikes exitSplit
Weaker than the model
Not addressed
Weaker than the model
Weaker than the model
Weaker than the model
Weaker than the model
Amendments only in writingSplit
Weaker than the model
Weaker than the model
Meets the model
Weaker than the model
Meets the model
Weaker than the model
Termination without penaltySplit
Weaker than the model
Meets the model
Weaker than the model
Weaker than the model
Weaker than the model
Weaker than the model
Specialty drug pricing controlsSplit
Weaker than the model
Not addressed
Weaker than the model
Contradicts the model
Weaker than the model
Weaker than the model
Gag clause (red flag)
Contradicts the model
Contradicts the model
Contradicts the model
Contradicts the model
Contradicts the model
Contradicts the model
Council synthesis: where the five models agreed and where they split
How the council worked
Five frontier models read the same page marked text of the contract between the City of San Antonio and CaremarkPCS Health, L.L.C. (CVS Health), 37 pages plus the ordinance. The models were Claude Opus 5 (Anthropic), GPT 5.6 Sol (OpenAI), Gemini 3.1 Pro (Google), Grok 4.6 (xAI) and Kimi K3 (Moonshot AI). Each read independently against the same 23 item rubric, derived from the model PBM contract published by Mark Cuban and collaborators. The reconciliation rule: three or more seats agreeing is the verdict; with no majority we take the median; a bad and missing tie is settled by re-reading the cited pages; and unclear is reserved for pages actually redacted, withheld or unreadable.
The contract incorporates Exhibits A through F (page 32) but none is posted, including the performance guarantees and the fee, discount and rebate terms. For every rubric item the body either decides the direction or is silent, so every item was decided on body text. Kimi K3 voted unclear on three items and Gemini 3.1 Pro on one; each time three or more seats found the same pages readable and reached a verdict, so those votes were overruled under rule 3. No item was scored unclear; that would have shrunk the denominator and raised the score for a text that already shows the vendor keeping manufacturer money.
Where the five models agreed
Loyalty and money. The fiduciary role is limited to claim adjudication and appeals (page 11). Rebates are defined narrowly (page 2), and manufacturer administrative fees plus affiliate pharmacy purchase discounts belong exclusively to the vendor (page 10). Unanimous bad on fiduciary duty, definitions, pass through and GPO pass through.
Formulary. The city adopted the CVS Health drug list, changed by the vendor on notice (page 8). Unanimous bad.
Market pricing. No most favored pricing and no market check (pages 17 to 19). Unanimous missing.
Gag clause. Costs and pricing data are confidential (page 34), Public Information Act requests route through the vendor (page 36), and rebate audit findings are withheld even from the city (page 15). Unanimous bad.
Where they split, and how it was resolved
Disclosure. Three partial, one missing, one bad. Majority partial: the fee disclosure (page 10) is real but nothing is certified at plan level.
Ownership exhibit. Three missing, two partial on the ownership change notice (page 21). Majority missing.
Affiliate pricing. Three bad, one missing, Kimi K3 unclear. Page 10 is readable, so the majority stands.
Benchmark ceiling and cash price. Three partial, two missing on each, all on the lowest of formula (page 4). Majority partial.
MAC governance. Four bad, one partial. Majority bad on the vendor set list (page 2).
Spread pricing. Two bad, two missing, Kimi K3 unclear. With the unclear vote overruled the middle was a tie, so we re-read the pages. The city pays a vendor set rate (page 4), pharmacies are paid under separate agreements (page 5), and the city may not audit them (page 15). That permits retained spread rather than merely omitting it: bad, at low confidence.
Lowest net cost. Four missing, GPT 5.6 Sol partial on a cost effectiveness factor (page 8). Majority missing.
Network protections. Three missing, two bad on the vendor's sole right to audit pharmacies (page 5). Majority missing: that clause covers billing, not steering.
Audit. Four partial, Gemini 3.1 Pro bad. Majority partial: annual audits exist (pages 14 and 15) but with a ten contract cap and no access to pharmacy or manufacturer agreements.
Data ownership. Three partial, two bad on the sale of deidentified claims data (page 19). Majority partial, since the city keeps its files (page 29).
Performance guarantees. Two partial, GPT 5.6 Sol bad, Gemini 3.1 Pro and Kimi K3 unclear because the schedule is in Exhibit A. Page 13 already says settlement is annual, remedies are exclusive and the total at risk is $175,000 in all, so the median of the three substantive votes is partial.
Enforcement. Four partial, one missing. Majority partial on automatic invoice adjustment (page 14).
Amendments. Three partial, two good. Majority partial: the clause (page 20) is model grade, but MAC and drug lists change on notice.
Termination. Four partial, one good. Majority partial: convenience exit (page 29) requires repaying credits.
Specialty. Three partial, one missing, one bad. Majority partial on the vendor leaning definition (page 3).
What only one model caught
Kimi K3 alone flagged that uncollected member copayments may be billed to the city (page 12).
Gemini 3.1 Pro alone flagged that Medicaid claims may arrive up to three years late and the city must reimburse the vendor (page 6).
Claude Opus 5 alone flagged five day payment terms with no offset of disputed amounts (page 18).
Claude Opus 5 and Gemini 3.1 Pro were outvoted on network protections, but their fact stands: only the vendor audits pharmacies (page 5).
The bottom line
The reconciled score is 17 out of 100, a Red flag, on 100 points of scored weight with 0 points unclear, and the gag clause flag is set. Ten partial items weigh 34 points and 34 divided by 2 is 17; nine bad items weigh 50 and four missing items 16. The seats' own scores ran from 3.1 (Gemini 3.1 Pro) to 21.0 (Claude Opus 5), with GPT 5.6 Sol at 18.0, Grok 4.6 at 15.5 and Kimi K3 at 13.1, all in the Red flag band. The spread reflects how each seat labelled silence and the withheld exhibits. The term ended on December 31, 2021 (page 18) and the city has posted no successor.
The same contract written up for different readers: the people who negotiate these agreements and the people who pay for them.
Good news, bad news: the short version
Good news
Amendments must be in writing, dated after the contract and signed by both parties (page 20).
The city may cancel without cause on 90 to 120 days notice (page 29), and may stop if funds are not appropriated (page 19).
The city owns information produced solely for it (page 19), and all files are city property at termination (page 29).
Every retail claim is priced at the lowest of the discounted rate, the pharmacy's usual and customary price and the MAC rate, and members pay the lowest of those or the copayment (page 4).
The city gets annual claims and rebate audits (page 15), a post termination audit (page 30), SOC 1 reports and audited financials (page 17), and portal access to claims data (page 7).
Performance penalties come off the vendor's invoice within sixty days (page 14), and only city claims are used to measure claims operations (page 13).
Bad news
The vendor is a fiduciary only for claim adjudication and appeals and disclaims fiduciary status for everything else (page 11).
Rebates means formulary rebates only (page 2); manufacturer administrative fees of one to four percent of wholesale acquisition cost, plus purchase discounts earned by the vendor's own pharmacies, belong exclusively to the vendor (page 10).
The city may not negotiate rebates or discounts with any drug maker on its own, and doing so is a material breach (page 10).
The formulary is the vendor's own CVS Health drug list, changed on thirty days notice with no city approval (page 8).
The MAC list is set and amended by the vendor on a list specific to the city, with no schedule and no appeal path (page 2).
The city may not audit the vendor's agreements with pharmacies or drug makers (page 15), so any spread stays invisible.
The rebate audit covers at most ten manufacturer contracts, and what the auditor sees may not be revealed to anyone, including the city (page 15).
The vendor may use, adapt and sell deidentified claims and eligibility data (page 19).
Performance dollars at risk are the city's exclusive financial remedy, settle once a year, and total $175,000 (page 13).
The vendor may suspend all services if the city is five days late on a payment (page 18).
Costs and pricing data are confidential, and Public Information Act requests route through the vendor, which the city agrees not to oppose (pages 34 and 36).
What we could not see
The contract incorporates Exhibits A through F (page 32), and none is posted. Exhibit A holds the performance guarantees (page 13); Exhibit B holds the administrative fees (page 17), discounts, dispensing fees, the implementation credit (page 3) and rebate remittance terms (page 9). Without them the guarantees, fees and rebate share cannot be read. The ordinance's estimate of $124,000 a year (Ordinance, page 1) is the only price figure in the posting.
The number
The reconciled score is 17 out of 100, a Red flag, with the gag clause flag set. Nothing scored good; ten items worth 34 points scored partial, and half of 34 is 17. Nothing was excluded as unclear, because the readable body decides every item. The change that would move the number most is pass through, worth 11 points: redefine Rebates to cover every dollar of manufacturer money on page 10 and pay all of it to the city. A no spread covenant, worth 9 points, would be next. The term ended in 2021 and no successor is posted, so the first step is a Public Information Act request for the current agreement and its exhibits.
Check our work
Read a page
Pull the text of any page we extracted and compare it with the original.
We already have this document, so you do not need to request it. What is still missing is whatever the posting withheld: redacted pricing exhibits, fee schedules, rebate terms and the incorporated proposal. Generate a Texas Public Information Act letter for City of San Antonio that names those pieces, send it in your own name, and log what comes back.
The model contract we score against is the open source PBM contract published by Mark Cuban and collaborators, version 3.5. BetterBuy Rx did not write it and is not affiliated with its authors. Read the original on LinkedIn.