NACDS has submitted comments to Health and Human Services Secretary Alex Azar in response to the agency’s request-for-information on drug-pricing public policy issues.
NACDS RxIMPACT pharmacy advocates are urging Senators to sign a letter to U.S. Secretary of Health and Human Services Secretary Alex Azar that is being led by Sen. Shelley Moore Capito (R-WV) and Sen. Jon Tester (D-MT).
Alex Gourlay, NACDS Chairman of the Board and co-chief operating officer, Walgreens Boots Alliance and president, Walgreen Co., said, “Pharmacy is beautifully positioned, as it always has been, to take care of changing shifts in the customer and in the marketplace."
NACDS underscored the importance of integrating pharmacy into healthcare solutions in comments to the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) this week.
NACDS, WSPA and NCPA argue that the state is violating federal and state laws potentially hindering Medicaid patient access to care. These laws protect patient access to medications by requiring the state to reimburse community pharmacies for the actual cost of dispensing medications.
NACDS outlined support for pro-patient healthcare solutions as Congressional Committees considered the FY2018 Department of Health and Human Services budget.
Olympia, WA – The National Association of Chain Drug Stores (NACDS), the Washington State Pharmacy Association (WSPA), and the National Community Pharmacists Association (NCPA) today sued the State of Washington to stop a “substantively and procedurally flawed” rule that would pay pharmacies below the actual cost to dispense Medicaid prescriptions. The rule would jeopardize reliable patient access to medications responsible for ensuring patient health and preventing more costly forms of care that result from untreated conditions.
“This Motion seeks to halt further reimbursement cuts until such time as the State properly implements Medicaid reimbursement rates that cover the actual costs that pharmacies incur when they serve Medicaid patients, as required by law,” wrote NACDS, WSPA and NCPA in a Motion filed today in the Superior Court of Washington, Thurston County.
At issue is a rule (WSR 17-07-001) by the Washington State Health Care Authority that changes the basis by which the agency determines pharmacies’ cost of acquiring pharmaceuticals, thus reducing reimbursement to pharmacies for medications dispensed to Medicaid patients. Contrary to a federal rule by the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services’ Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services, the Washington State rule does not make required adjustments to account for another aspect of pharmacies’ costs– the “professional dispensing fee.”
The professional dispensing fee must cover actual costs to safely fill the prescription such as the pharmacist’s professional services. The current dispensing fee in Washington State is significantly lower than the cost of dispensing identified in studies conducted by other states and experts. For example, an independent study commissioned by NACDS and NCPA found that the cost of dispensing in Washington State is more than double the proposed professional dispensing fee for Medicaid prescriptions in Washington State’s new rule.
In addition to failing to adjust professional dispensing fees, as required by federal law, the State also violated rulemaking procedures. The State informed pharmacies after the formal comment period, and after it issued the final rule, that dispensing fees would not be adjusted. As a result, pharmacy did not have an adequate opportunity to comment on this matter, as required by the State’s Administrative Procedure Act.
“The State’s new rule is both substantively and procedurally [ READ MORE ]
Arlington, Va. – As more than 400 pharmacy advocates from 47 states meet with more than 90 percent of the U.S. Congress next week, a Washington, D.C. advertising initiative will help to tell their story. The ads state: “Pharmacists provide access to better healthcare every day,” and “we’re here to provide access to health policy solutions.”
The grassroots advocacy event is the National Association of Chain Drug Stores (NACDS) RxIMPACT Day on Capitol Hill – now in its ninth year. Print and digital advertising will draw focus to the personalized stories of participating NACDS member company representatives, student pharmacists, state pharmacy association representatives and other allies.
“NACDS will bring our ‘Access Agenda’ to Capitol Hill with the personal insights and experiences of pharmacy team members who serve as the face of neighborhood healthcare,” said NACDS President and CEO Steven C. Anderson, IOM, CAE. “The ads emphasize the point that pharmacy is a go-to source for public policy solutions, just as pharmacy is a go-to source for accessible, quality and affordable health and wellness services.”
“NACDS is setting the tone for even higher levels of collaboration that we are seeking with other segments of the healthcare delivery system, with policymakers and with thought leaders.”
The ads refer viewers to a microsite summarizing policy positions that advocates will take to members of Congress. Among them, NACDS is urging a commitment to the cost-effective prescription drug benefit in Medicaid and in Medicare amid the current discussions of potential changes to the Affordable Care Act. NACDS also is urging enactment of the Pharmacy and Medically Underserved Areas Enhancement Act (H.R. 592 and S. 109), to improve healthcare access for medically underserved Medicare patients.
“NACDS is drawing attention to pharmacy’s role in a positive and proactive public dialogue about healthcare issues. For example, in addition to our meetings on Capitol Hill, the NACDS RxIMPACT program welcomes members of Congress for pharmacy tours and other in-district and in-state events, which are incredibly helpful for demonstrating real-life healthcare issues in real-life settings,” Anderson explained.
“NACDS is setting the tone for even higher levels of collaboration that we are seeking with other segments of the healthcare delivery system, with policymakers [ READ MORE ]
This week NACDS’ Anne Fellows and Mike Duteau, vice president of Business Development and Strategic Relations for Kinney Drugs Inc., met with Gov. Phil Scott (R-VT) during the Vermont Association of Chain Drug Stores’ 2017 Legislative Lobby Day. Attendees met with Gov. Scott to discuss several initiatives, including expansion of pharmacist immunization authority and plans for the state to comply with requirements in the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services’ Covered Outpatient Drugs Final Rule. The Final Rule addresses key areas of Medicaid drug reimbursement and changes made to the Medicaid Drug Rebate Program by the Affordable Care Act.
During his Senate confirmation hearing this week and since being nominated for Secretary of Health and Human Services, U.S. Rep. Tom Price (R-Ga.) has focused on six principles of healthcare reform: affordability, accessibility, quality, innovation, responsiveness, choices. In fact, Rep. Price has focused on those principles for some time – he described them in an op-ed column in The Hill back in 2013 and likely many times before that during his Congressional and medical careers.
Importantly, pharmacy’s contributions to healthcare affordability, accessibility, quality, innovation, responsiveness and choices are highly regarded among Republicans, Democrats and independents alike.
To be sure, these terms are cited frequently across party lines. The real debate exists in the details of how these principles are best achieved. I cannot help but note at this pivotal time in our nation’s healthcare policy skirmishes that pharmacy makes a powerful case for its role in advancing all of these principles. Consider the following:
Affordability: In a national survey commissioned by NACDS, 65 percent of respondents said pharmacists are credible information sources on opportunities to save money.
Accessibility: Nearly all Americans (91%) live within five miles of a community pharmacy.
Quality: In a national survey commissioned by NACDS, more than seven-in-ten respondents who are considered heavy users of pharmacy services reported favorable opinions of pharmacies – which is a very strong rating in comparison with other segments of healthcare delivery.
Innovation: NACDS’ training program to advance pharmacy-based pharmacogenomics – a form of personalized medicine that involves using genetic data to ensure medications are used in a safe and effective manner – presents but one example of the industry’s commitment to innovation.
Responsiveness: NACDS’ training program to advance pharmacy-based point-of-care testing for flu, strep and other acute and chronic conditions reflects pharmacy’s ability to improve options available to patients regarding the manner and environment in which they are treated.
Choices: NACDS advocates strongly for patient choice, and an example of this is maintaining a co-payment structure that secures military families’ and veterans’ ability to choose community pharmacies over mail order as the source for their medications. The Congressional Budget Office has found that higher copayments “cause some chronically ill beneficiaries to stop taking their medications, resulting in more [ READ MORE ]
