NCPA Hosts Member Webinar
on Upcoming Supreme Court Case

This week, NCPA hosted an all member webinar (Note: this link is only good for 5 days) with the Arkansas Pharmacists Association to provide additional background and information for members about Rutledge v. PCMA, the case the Supreme Court will hear this spring. The case will provide greater clarity on the steps individual states can take to regulate PBMs. Members can also find additional information surrounding the case at NCPA’s dedicated webpage on the issue.

Please continue to bear in mind that litigation is expensive. If you have not done so, please consider an investment in NCPA's Legislative/Legal Defense Fund. The LDF supports our entire advocacy operation, including attorneys and outside counsel. The better funded the LDF, the more resources and influence we can put toward getting state and federal priority legislation passed and defending your practice in key litigation. If you are not already an investor, please become one today.

Register Now for the
2020 NCPA Congressional Pharmacy Fly-in

Registration for NCPA’s 2020 Congressional Pharmacy Fly-in now open. The Fly-in, which will be held April 21-22, is an opportune time to meet with legislators or their key staff about community pharmacy’s legislative priorities. You'll fly in, spend a few hours with the NCPA Advocacy Center staff, and then have some face time with your members of Congress and/or their staff. It's your chance to tell them how their votes affect your business and the patients you serve. This year, there is also the added possibility that the Supreme Court may hear oral arguments in Rutledge v. PCMA during the fly-in week. Don’t miss out.

NCPA to Submit Comments
to FTC and DOJ on Vertical Mergers

The DOJ and FTC recently proposed an overhaul of antitrust rules for vertical mergers. The new criteria for evaluating vertical deals is drawing some criticism, especially from Democratic members of FTC who say the new guidelines don’t go far enough. U.S. antitrust enforcers are proposing new guidelines for determining whether to approve mergers that combine companies that don’t compete with one another but operate in the same supply chain. The Justice Department and the Federal Trade Commission announced criteria for how they would evaluate so-called vertical mergers in the future. If finalized, the guidelines would replace rules that haven’t formally been updated since 1984 despite new thinking about how such deals affect competition. The proposal marks a move by the two agencies to clarify their approach to assessing potential competitive harm from vertical deals. In theory, a vertical deal can make a company more efficient by giving it cost advantages over rivals, and those lower costs can be passed on to customers in the form of lower prices. But lawyers and economists also point out that vertical deals can threaten competition by giving a company the power to raise the operating costs of its rivals. NCPA will be weighing in, focusing on vertical mergers in the healthcare industry that have led to escalating healthcare costs, anticompetitive harm, decreased access to care, and public health considerations beyond cost. Please be on the lookout for a template that NCPA members can use to submit comments too (deadline is February 11).

HHS Releases Final Rule
on Schedule II Pharmacy Transactions
in Medicare Part D

This week, the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) issued a final rule modifying the requirements for use of existing standards for the electronic transmission of retail pharmacy transactions for drugs subject to Schedule II of the Controlled Substances Act. According to information in the final rule, the standards apply in the Medicare Part D program. HHS indicates that the Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act (HIPAA) requires HHS to adopt standards for the electronic transmission of certain health care administrative transactions conducted between health care providers, health plans, health care clearinghouses, and other entities. HHS indicates the modification in the final rule will enable covered entities to determine whether a prescription is a “partial fill,” or a refill. The Department emphasized that the change is needed to improve data “that may help prevent impermissible refills of Schedule II drugs, which will help to address the public health concerns associated with prescription drug abuse in the United States.” The final rule is effective 60 days from its January 24, 2020 publication in the Federal Register, which requires covered entities to comply 180 days after publication.

USP Holds Hearing on <795> and <797>

This week, the USP Appeals Panel heard from the Alliance for Pharmacy Compounding (APC), Innovation Compounding, and Wedgewood Pharmacy during a hearing to review compounding pharmacies’ concerns with USP Chapters <795> and <797>. Of main concern was the overly restrictive beyond-use-dates (BUDs) in <797>. NCPA attended the hearing to support these concerns, as outlined in a letter we submitted to USP with the American Pharmacists Association (APhA). Due to these appeals, USP has indefinitely postponed enforcement of <795> and <797> until the current appeals process resolves. The decision of the Appeals Panel shall be final. For more information, please visit USP’s FAQ on Compounding Appeals.

FL Pharmacists Rally for PBM Reform

This week, Florida pharmacists rallied in Tallahassee to show support for PBM legislation under consideration in the Florida Legislature. NCPA was proud to be one of the sponsors of this PBM Reform Rally, and appreciates all the pharmacists who attended. The showing demonstrates that it's time the state legislature puts patients, taxpayers and Floridian-owned community pharmacies before the interests of out-of-state unregulated PBMs. NCPA will continue to work with pharmacy allies in the state to enact meaningful PBM reform.

Pennsylvania Auditor General
Urges Passage of PBM Bills

During a press conference, Pennsylvania Auditor General Eugene DePasquale (D) urged the state Senate to pass legislation that would increase PBM transparency and accountability in the commonwealth, specifically highlightingHB 941, HB 943, and HB 944. NCPA has been working with Auditor General DePasquale since 2018 to shed light on PBM abuses in Pennsylvania. During that time, NCPA staff has testified before the Auditor General in Harrisburg, attended a press conference at a community pharmacy outside Scranton, and hosted the Auditor General and his staff at NCPA’s offices. As a result of his investigations, Auditor General DePasquale found that PBM abuses have caused the commonwealth’s Medicaid drug spend to more than double since 2013.

NCPA Joins Letter Urging Reimbursement Parity
in New Mexico

NCPA joined a letter with the American Society of Health-System Pharmacists (ASHP), National Association of Chain Drug Stores (NACDS), and the National Alliance of State Pharmacy Associations(NASPA) urging New Mexico Gov. Lujan-Grisham (D) to support HB 42. The bill would require reimbursement of patient-care services provided by appropriately certified pharmacists and is scheduled for a hearing next week.

NCPA State Legislative Activity Update

NCPA tracks state legislation related to our top three state priorities: Medicaid reform, scope of practice and compensation for services, and PBM reform and regulation. Click each issue for a report of bills that have been introduced so far this session specifically dealing with these three issue areas. You can access the individual bill language and basic information on the bill by clicking on the bill numbers in the attached report. Bills that have moved this week are listed at the top in the “Recently Updated” section.

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