Potential Senate Vote on ACA Repeal and Replace: Senate Republicans are struggling to find a path forward on their latest bid to repeal and replace the Affordable Care Act (ACA) and are heading toward a potential vote this week on a bill from Sens. Lindsay Graham (R-S.C.) and Bill Cassidy (R-La.) without 50 votes locked down. The bill seeks to replace Medicaid expansion and insurance subsidies with block grants to the states. Republicans are under a tight timeline to try and clear repeal by a simple majority as the special fiscal year 2017 budget rules that allow them to avoid a Democratic filibuster expire at the end of the month. With several Republican Senators voicing opposition to the bill it is very fluid and we expect more negotiating over the next few days. Advocacy staff has been and will remain in communication with the Hill on the value of community pharmacists to patients, the important role pharmacists play in serving Medicaid recipients, and the critical need to ensure access to prescription drugs and pharmacy services.
NCPA Hosts Event for Chairman of the House Energy & Commerce Subcommittee on Health: NCPA hosted a successful fundraising reception in Denton, TX for Rep. Michael Burgess (R-Texas) this week. The event was hosted by NCPA member Kelly Selby, R.Ph. owner of Community Pharmacy in Denton with over 40 pharmacy owners participating. Rep. Burgess assumed the influential position of Chairman of the House Energy & Commerce Subcommittee on Health at the beginning of the year, which has significant authority over Medicare and Medicaid programs as well as other issues affecting pharmacy. Several issues were discussed at the event including pharmacy DIR fees and the right of independent pharmacies to compound medications, which the Congressman has continued to be a proponent of.
Senate HELP Committee Announces Opioid Hearing: The Senate Health, Education, Labor and Pensions (HELP) Committee announced this week that it will be holding a hearing on October 5, 2017 addressing the opioid crisis. Witnesses from the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA), Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC),. National Institutes for Health (NIH) , and the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) are slated to testify at the hearing.
NCPA to FDA: No Waivers to Single REMS Requirement: In response to a July meeting and call for public comment, NCPA has sent a letter to the Food and Drug Administration addressing ways to improve access to generic drugs. In the letter, NCPA asks that the FDA focus on abuse of REMS by some manufacturers to obstruct access to generic drugs — instead of allowing generic manufacturers to create their own separate REMS program that would lead to unnecessary burdens on health care or providers and patients.
New FDA Guidance on Compounding May Come Soon: According to an interview with Reuters, Food and Drug Administration Commissioner Scott Gottlieb says the FDA plans to announce new policy encouraging compounding pharmacies to register with federal authorities, per the Drug Quality and Security Act of 2013. Gottlieb said he expects the new guidance to address concerns of smaller pharmacies. NCPA will continue to fight for the traditional practice of compounding to fall under the oversight of state boards of pharmacy.
Dealing With DIRs? We Can Help: In our industry, dealing with DIR continues to be a hot topic. In an educational session at the NCPA 2017 Annual Convention Oct. 14-18 in Orlando, Fla., “Prepare for Impact! DIR Estimation and Mitigation Strategies for your Pharmacy,” you’ll learn about resources that will help you with forecasting, a strategy for financial management to help you ease cash flow, and how to evaluate DIR technology tools and service solutions. Register for the convention today and sign up for this can’t-miss session. Only a few weeks remain to save $100 off of on-site registration prices.
CMS Innovation Center New Direction Request for Information (RFI) Announced: Through this informal RFI the CMS Innovation Center is seeking feedback on a new direction to promote patient-centered care and test market-driven reforms that empower beneficiaries as consumers, provide price transparency, increase choices and competition to drive quality, reduce costs, and improve outcomes. In particular, the Innovation Center is interested in testing models in the following eight focus areas:
- Increased participation in Advanced Alternative Payment Models (APMs);
- Consumer-Directed Care & Market-Based Innovation Models;
- Physician Specialty Models;
- Prescription Drug Models;
- Medicare Advantage (MA) Innovation Models;
- State-Based and Local Innovation, including Medicaid-focused Models;
- Mental and Behavioral Health Models; and
- Program Integrity.
NCPA will be submitting comments by the November 20th deadline focused on models in which pharmacists play a pivotal role.
In the States:
- California: Assemblyman Jim Wood’s (D-Healdsburg) bill to regulate pharmacy benefit managers stalled in the Senate this session for an issue the state administration had with a disclosure requirement, according to Wood’s office. Wood credits PBMs with adding to escalating prescription drug prices. The bill would have required PBMs to disclose directly to purchasers information on drug discounts, typically health plans and labor trusts. However, state administration has reportedly asked the bill’s authors to consider changing that requirement, making PBMs disclose the information to the Department of Managed Health Care instead, which would then report to purchasers.
