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LouisianaHB 12232026 Regular SessionHouseWALLET

ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT: Establishes the Louisiana Clinical Trial Competitiveness and Patient Access Act

Sponsored By: Jack McFarland (Republican)

Signed by Governor

Commerce, Consumer Protection and International AffairsCommerce

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Bill Overview

Analyzed Economic Effects

6 provisions identified: 3 benefits, 1 costs, 2 mixed.

Louisiana can fund voluntary trial support

The department can seek and spend federal funds, grants, gifts, donations, matching funds, and other lawful money for trial support. Spending and voluntary support agreements depend on approved funding, available money, and applicable law; no specific appropriation or new positions are required. Before giving money or other value, the department must document a public purpose that advances trial access, competitiveness, or related goals. Agreements cannot grant exclusive market rights, force routing through the department or its helpers, demand protected information, or take away independent trial participation. The law guarantees no site performance, patient outcome, enrollment, or research success, and creates no private lawsuit right based solely on its implementation.

Louisiana promotes trial sites without gatekeeping

Louisiana Economic Development can verify and market information that trial sites voluntarily provide about their skills and trial startup times. The framework covers industry- or federally-sponsored trials testing FDA-regulated products; Phase IV trials need designation or voluntary inclusion. Observational studies, chart reviews, registry-only studies, and quality-improvement work are excluded; expanded access outside trials needs designation or voluntary inclusion. Patients, providers, sites, and sponsors cannot be forced to join or route information through the department or its helpers. The department can set coordination rules, but cannot control medical decisions, contracts, trial openings, referrals, or sponsor choices. It must consult research groups, sponsors, patient-access groups, health officials, and privacy and operations experts. The law took effect upon the governor's signature and covers projects whose first sponsor, trial-management, site-selection, or feasibility submission arrives on or after that date. New rules and guidance apply only after they take effect.

Privacy protections for patients and trial sites

The department generally cannot demand private patient data or sensitive trial, referral, contract, budget, or business information. Sharing remains allowed when the law permits it or through a voluntary written agreement, subject to privacy requirements. A helper linked to a competitor needs each affected person's written consent to access protected information, unless access is otherwise lawful. Required data must be combined, nonidentifying information needed to review the program; public reports must protect patient and business details. The law also bars patient steering, dividing markets or patients among competitors, and coordinating prices or contract terms.

Local ethics boards require records and reports

Trial sites using their own ethics boards under the law must keep records supporting that choice. They must send the department combined reports that do not identify patients or disclose protected business or project details. The department sets the schedule, but cannot require reports more often than twice a year.

Trial sites face central ethics review rules

Covered first-in-human, Phase I, early device feasibility, dose-escalation, Phase II, and Phase III trials must use an outside central ethics board when legally allowed and a federally compliant arrangement is available. A sponsor can request the site's own board in writing; early-trial reliance is also excused when binding federal award terms prohibit it. For early trials with an outside board already named, local review starts only after the sponsor withdraws that choice or confirms in writing that the outside board is unavailable. For Phase II and III trials, the responsible top executive can sign a documented, project-only exception for legal grounds or extraordinary feasibility, participant-rights, safety, or welfare concerns—not preference, convenience, staffing limits, customary practice, or relationship control. These requirements exclude specified Phase IV and other studies after product approval, authorization, clearance, or classification.

Trial sites keep safeguards, not duplicate reviews

When an outside central ethics board is responsible or has approved a covered trial, sites cannot require duplicate local ethics approval. This applies even to sites outside the state program, but excludes specified Phase IV and other post-approval studies. Sites keep lawful local checks of contracts, budgets, coverage analysis, staff qualifications, safety, privacy, and readiness. They cannot delay trials solely for preference, convenience, staffing limits, customary sequencing, or disagreement with outside-board review. Sites need not waive legal, federal, safety, accreditation, or documented institutional duties, and may decline trials they lack capacity to run.

Sponsors & Cosponsors

Sponsor

  • Jack McFarland

    Republican • House

Cosponsors

There are no cosponsors for this bill.

Roll Call Votes

All Roll Calls

Yes: 242 • No: 0

House vote • 5/29/2026

Read by title, roll called, yeas 98, nays 0, Senate amendments concurred in.

Yes: 98 • No: 0

Senate vote • 5/26/2026

Rules suspended. The amended bill was read by title, passed by a vote of 38 yeas and 0 nays, and ordered returned to the House. Motion to reconsider tabled.

Yes: 38 • No: 0

House vote • 5/11/2026

Read third time by title, amended, roll called on final passage, yeas 94, nays 0. Finally passed, title adopted, ordered to the Senate.

Yes: 94 • No: 0

House vote • 4/21/2026

Reported with amendments

Yes: 12 • No: 0

Actions Timeline

  1. Signed by the Governor. Becomes Act No. 886.

    6/9/2026House

  2. Effective date: 06/09/2026.

    6/9/2026House

  3. Sent to the Governor for executive approval.

    6/2/2026House

  4. Signed by the President of the Senate.

    6/1/2026Senate

  5. Enrolled and signed by the Speaker of the House.

    5/31/2026House

  6. Read by title, roll called, yeas 98, nays 0, Senate amendments concurred in.

    5/29/2026House

  7. Scheduled for concurrence on 05/29/2026.

    5/27/2026House

  8. Rules suspended. The amended bill was read by title, passed by a vote of 38 yeas and 0 nays, and ordered returned to the House. Motion to reconsider tabled.

    5/26/2026Senate

  9. Received from the Senate with amendments.

    5/26/2026House

  10. Reported without Legislative Bureau amendments. Read by title and passed to third reading and final passage.

    5/25/2026Senate

  11. Committee amendments read and adopted. Read by title and referred to the Legislative Bureau.

    5/21/2026Senate

  12. Reported with amendments.

    5/20/2026Senate

  13. Read second time by title and referred to the Committee on Commerce, Consumer Protection and International Affairs.

    5/13/2026Senate

  14. Received in the Senate. Read first time by title and placed on the Calendar for a second reading.

    5/12/2026Senate

  15. Called from the calendar.

    5/11/2026House

  16. Read third time by title, amended, roll called on final passage, yeas 94, nays 0. Finally passed, title adopted, ordered to the Senate.

    5/11/2026House

  17. Called from the calendar.

    5/7/2026House

  18. Read by title, returned to the calendar.

    5/7/2026House

  19. Notice given.

    5/7/2026House

  20. Scheduled for floor debate on 05/11/2026.

    5/7/2026House

  21. Called from the calendar.

    5/5/2026House

  22. Read by title, returned to the calendar.

    5/5/2026House

  23. Notice given.

    5/5/2026House

  24. Scheduled for floor debate on 05/07/2026.

    5/5/2026House

  25. Read by title, returned to the calendar.

    4/27/2026House

Bill Text

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