NCPA Advocacy Update

Week ending Oct. 19

Author: APCI Staff/Monday, October 22, 2018/Categories: Legislative Affairs

NCPA leadership attends White House
bill signing eliminating “gag” clauses

On Oct. 10, President Trump signed into law two pieces of legislation, S. 2553, the Know the Lowest Price Act of 2018, and S. 2554, the Patient Right to Know Drug Prices Act, which prohibit so-called pharmacist "gag clauses" in Medicare and private health plans. NCPA was honored to be invited to the bill signing and was represented by newly-installed president Bill Osborn, PharmD, owner of Osborn Drugs in Miami, Okla.; NCPA chairman Michele M. Belcher, RPh, owner of Grants Pass Pharmacy in Grants Pass, Ore., NCPA board member Hugh M. Chancy, RPh, owner of Chancy Drugs in Hahira, Ga.; and NCPA CEO B. Douglas Hoey, Pharmacist, MBA. NCPA advocated for these pieces of legislation and recently sent a letter to President Trump urging that he sign them into law. Chancy also testified last month before the House Energy & Commerce Health subcommittee in support of eliminating “gag” clauses.

The force of the law will provide for the freer flow of information between pharmacists and their patients. It's important for pharmacists to know if their state prohibits gag clauses in Medicaid. If not, similar legislation needs to be passed at the state level to address gag clauses in the Medicaid space. Here's an NCPA fact sheet explaining more details of the law.


Sec. Azar and Senior HHS staff participates
in community pharmacy roundtable discussion

On Oct. 12, U.S. Department of Health and Human Services Secretary Alex Azar and Paul Mango, Chief Principal Deputy Administrator and Chief of Staff in the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services' Office of the Administrator visited Spartan Pharmacy in Pittsburgh as part of ongoing efforts to highlight President Trump's signing into law legislation banning so-called "gag clauses." Azar and Mango held a roundtable discussion at the pharmacy with NCPA members Adam Rice and Kevin McCaffrey, Spartan Pharmacy's owners, and Erich Cushey, NCPA member and owner of Curtis Pharmacy in Washington, Pa. and Claysville, Pa. Also attending was Karry La Violette, NCPA's senior vice president of government affairs and director of the NCPA Advocacy Center, as well as several patients from the Pittsburgh area.


HHS videos highlight pharmacist role
in reducing patient costs

In conjunction with President Trump’s signing of legislation eliminating “gag” clauses and Sec. Azar’s community pharmacy roundtable, HHS produced two videos highlighting the role pharmacists can play in lowering patient out of pocket costs. The first video features NCPA board members Bill Osborn, Michele Belcher and Hugh Chancy as well as NCPA member Teresa Tolle advising patients on the questions they should ask their pharmacist and the second highlights that, with the elimination of “gag” clauses, pharmacists are able to have more open communication with their patients and features Azar as well as NCPA member Adam Rice.


NCPA to attend White House event commemorating year
of historic action on opioid prevention

Next Wednesday, President Trump will host an event at the White House to commemorate its work on the opioid crisis. The event will focus on "a year of historic action to combat the opioid crisis." For the second time this month, NCPA CEO Doug Hoey has been invited to the White House by President Trump and will be on hand to represent community pharmacy and the role that pharmacists play in treating patients and helping to stop the opioid crisis. Earlier this month, the bipartisan opioids package, H.R. 6, cleared both chambers of Congress and was sent to the President’s desk, where it is awaiting his signature to become law.


NCPA member Carter High at National Physicians’ Council
for Healthcare Policy event

Today, NCPA member Carter High, PharmD, RPh of Best Value Pharmacies in Rhome, Texas discussed DIR fees at an event sponsored by Congressman Pete Sessions (R-Texas) and the National Physicians’ Council for Healthcare Policy. High’s presentation, “Prescription Drug Pricing and Community Pharmacy,” highlighted DIR and the negative impacts it has on both patients and pharmacies as well as other PBM tactics that undermine patients.


NCPA comments on pharmacist role in ACOs

This Tuesday NCPA submitted comments to CMS about pharmacists’ underutilized role in ACO programs. CMS issued a proposed rule on the ACO program in early August that solicited comments on how Part D plans could be incorporated into the current ACO model in Medicare. NCPA advocated for the inclusion of community pharmacists in ACOs but recommended that today’s Part D structure often disadvantages community pharmacists due to inconsistent quality metrics that lead to poor reimbursements and the restrictive nature of preferred networks. NCPA applauded CMS’ recognition of a pharmacist’s role in value-based programs and suggested that the issues for community pharmacists in Part D be fully considered if the programs were to coordinate.


Trump administration releases fall regulatory agenda

This week, the Trump Administration released the fall 2018 unified agenda. Every spring and fall, the release of the unified agenda signals the regulatory actions that the administration will devote its focus for the next 6 months. Notable rules slated include the Part D 2020 Proposed Rule which many have speculated may address direct and indirect remuneration in some form. There are also a number of rules that were slated to come out this summer that have been pushed to the fall agenda which include a rule to remove and also create certain safe harbor protections for rebates to plans or PBMs and a rule on changes to Medicare Managed Care programs. Finally, a rule is slated to come out addressing certain amendments to the list of bulk substances that can be used to compound drugs for 503A facilities. This fall ensures to be a busy one as NCPA continues to monitor and submit comments on a number of regulatory efforts including those listed above.


Text your support for NCPA’s LDF

We've made supporting NCPA's advocacy efforts a whole lot easier. Now you can TEXT to invest in in NCPA's Legislative/Legal Defense Fund, the engine that fuels our entire advocacy operation. Text "defense" to 50555, click on the link you'll receive and complete the (very) short form. Takes less than a minute, and you'll be doing your part to help us protect your pharmacy business.


In the states

  • California AB 315 was signed into law by the governor at the end of September. The law requires PBMs to exercise good faith and fair dealing and requires them to report and disclose certain information to plan sponsors and third party payers. The law also prohibits contract provisions that prohibit pharmacists from informing patients of less costly alternatives to a prescription medication. It requires PBMs to register with the Department of Managed Health Care, establishes a Task Force on Pharmacy Benefit Management Reporting, and creates a pilot project to assess the impact of health plan and PBM prohibitions on the dispensing of certain amounts of prescription drugs.

NCPA’s Advocacy Center Update provides a weekly detailed summary of recent and breaking legislative, regulatory, and state developments impacting independent community pharmacy and NCPA’s efforts to affect policies benefitting its membership and the industry. The weekly update is distributed to NCPA leadership, steering committees, allied organizations/stakeholders and major contributors to the NCPA LDF and PAC.

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