• Turn Up the Heat in August’s Month of Action
• NCPA Members Meet with Legislators and Advocate for Community Pharmacy
• NCPA Urges FTC to Block Prime/Magellan Merger
• Fifth Circuit Dismisses LIPA Lawsuit Against ESI
• Proposed Tax Hikes Not Included in Reconciliation Bill
• NCPA Voices Support for Novavax COVID Vaccine to CDC
• 2022 NCPA Census Survey: Deadline July 25
• More DSCSA/Track and Trace Resources Available for Dispensers
• NCPA State Legislative Activity Update

Turn Up the Heat on Your Member of Congress in August

Congress’ August in-district work period is just weeks away, and that is an opportune time to invite them to visit your pharmacy. There’s no better way for them to see what you do and how important your pharmacy is to the community you serve. Check out this video of Rep. Buddy Carter (R-Ga.) and NCPA Vice President Michael Kim discussing how to effectively host a legislator. We’re asking all community and LTC pharmacists to participate in our Month of Action and turn up the heat on our elected officials. Additionally, NCPA members Nasir Mahmood, Nate Rockers, and Stacey Swartz also have tips for hosting a legislator and effectively communicating with them. Congressional schedules are filling up for August so don’t delay! Please let us know of your interest in participating by completing this interest form or by emailing Michael Rule and submit your invites to your legislators as soon as possible.

NCPA Members Meet with Legislators and Advocate
for Community Pharmacy

Recently, NCPA members met with several lawmakers or their staff to advocate for community pharmacy. Retired pharmacist Popat Patel met with Rep. Ro Khanna (D-Calif.) when he was visiting the San Francisco area. He discussed DIR fees and Rep. Khanna subsequently cosponsored H.R. 3554, the Pharmacy DIR Reform to Reduce Senior Drug Costs Act. Additionally, Lance Bien, owner of Bien Pharmacy in Milbank S.D., hosted Rep. Dusty Johnson (R-S.D.). Finally, an aide to Sen. James Lankford (R-Okla.) visited NCPA member Nick Curtin, owner of Curtin Drug. If you have not invited your legislator to your pharmacy, there is still time to do for NCPA’s Month of Action during the August Congressional Recess.

NCPA Urges FTC to Block Prime/Magellan Merger

This week, NCPA sent a letter to Holly Vedova, director of the FTC’s Bureau of Competition, opposing the proposed acquisition of Magellan RX Management by Prime Therapeutics LLC/Express Scripts, noting that it would lead to further consolidation of an already consolidated market. NCPA urged the FTC to sue to block the merger as it would allow Prime Therapeutics LLC/ Express Scripts to more easily steer patients to its own mail-order pharmacies for “specialty” drugs and potentially supply it with valuable insight into claims-level data on competitors currently using Magellan.

Fifth Circuit Dismisses LIPA Lawsuit Against ESI

This week, the 5th Circuit Court dismissed the Louisiana suit (LIPA v. Express Scripts) without deciding the question of Medicare Part D preemption. The Court found that it did not have jurisdiction to hear the case. LIPA may have other options available to it and NCPA will work with LIPA to see if it can help pursue those options. NCPA previously filed joint a brief supporting LIPA’s claims along with the Texas Pharmacy Association, American Pharmacies, and Pharmacists United for Truth and Transparency.

Proposed Tax Hikes Not Included in Reconciliation Bill

Senate Democrats plan to advance a budget reconciliation bill in the coming weeks, but it will not include the $300-400 billion in Main Street tax hikes originally planned. The decision to scrap the tax provisions was made after Senator Joe Manchin (D-W.Va.) presented Democratic leaders with a deal: pass a smaller bill without tax hikes now or continue negotiations into September with the hopes that the inflation and economic outlook improves. Manchin’s offer came after more than 200 trade associations, including NCPA, joined on a letter opposing the proposed tax hikes.

NCPA Voices Support for Novavax COVID Vaccine to CDC

This week, NCPA sent a letter in support of Novavax’s COVID-19 vaccine to the CDC’s Advisory Committee on Immunization Practices ahead of ACIP’s July 19 meeting where the Novavax vaccine was recommended. NCPA previously supported FDA’s July 13 decision to approve the Novavax vaccine for emergency use for the prevention of COVID-19 caused by severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) in individuals 18 years of age and older.

2022 NCPA Census Survey: Deadline July 25

Please take 10 minutes this weekend to complete the 2022 Community Pharmacy Impact Census. It’s the best way for NCPA to show how important independent pharmacies are to their communities with the services and support they provide. This is your chance to help us tell the world. Your participation helps NCPA build a blueprint that is critical to describing to policymakers, media and the general public the value independent pharmacies bring to health care in their communities. The deadline is Monday, July 25.

More DSCSA/Track and Trace Resources
Available for Dispensers

The Partnership for DSCSA Governance (PDG) held a DSCSA Pilot and Workshop last month. NCPA members can review slides from the pilot and assess compliance with current DSCSA (a.k.a. track-and-trace) requirements and prepare for track-and-trace interoperability in November 2023. It is especially important that pharmacies only purchase prescription drugs from authorized trading partners (i.e. licensed wholesalers) to avoid ending up with counterfeit product. Slides shared by PDG include a walk-through scenario. Additionally, PDG has recently released its first chapter of its Foundational Blueprint for 2023 Interoperability, and NABP recently released its Report on the DSCSA State Regulator Pilot. For general resources for dispensers on DSCSA, see HDA’s microsite which NCPA helped construct, here. For more information, contact Rachel Newman, Associate Director, HDA Research Foundation.

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.