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So far Michael Silber has created 1944 blog entries.

Alabama

Effective April 1, 2022, the Alabama Medicaid Agency will: 

  1. Require Vascepa to be billed with a Dispense as Written (DAW) Code of 9. DAW Code of 9 indicates the following: Substitution Allowed by Prescriber but Plan Requests Brand. This value is used when the prescriber has indicated, in a manner specified by prevailing law, that generic substitution is permitted, but the Plan requests the brand product to be dispensed.
  2. Require Prior Authorization (PA) for Icosapent Ethyl (generic Vascepa). Brand Vascepa will be added as preferred.
  3. Require Prior Authorization (PA) for Colchicine capsules (generic Mitigare). Brand Mitigare will remain non-preferred.
  4. Treatments for COVID-19 will remain accessible and available through the pharmacy benefit on an outpatient basis through the Federal Public Health Emergency (PHE) period. Approval was granted to ensure any drug with an FDA-approved or EUA-authorized indication for the treatment of COVID-19 be made available as a preferred drug through the duration of the Federal PHE.

For more information, contact NACDS’ Leigh Knotts at 803-243-7207.

2023-10-10T09:02:28-04:00March 11, 2022|Alabama|

California

The following alerts have been posted to the Medi-Cal Rx Web Portal:  

Finally in California, the Board of Pharmacy will host the Pharmacy Technician Summit on April 19; details TBD. In advance of this summit, the board invites California pharmacists and California pharmacy technicians to participate in Pharmacist Listening Sessions and Pharmacy Technician Listening Sessions. For those unable to participate, the board is also accepting feedback via short online surveys for both pharmacists and technicians, respectively. 

For more information, contact NACDS’ Sandra Guckian at 703-774-4801.

2022-03-11T10:34:55-05:00March 11, 2022|California|

Georgia

The Georgia Pharmacy Association presents “APhA’s Delivering Medication Therapy Management Services: A Certificate Training Program for Pharmacists” on March 27 from 8:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m. This live training is being held via Zoom Meetings. Click here to register! 

For more information, contact NACDS’ Leigh Knotts at 803-243-7207.

2022-03-11T10:34:20-05:00March 11, 2022|Georgia|

Indiana

NACDS sent a letter to Medicaid detailing our concerns regarding tiered reimbursement rates that we raised with the Family and Social Services Administration (FSSA) and Myers and Stauffer on our February 11 Zoom call.  

Also in Indiana, on March 3, Gov. Eric Holcolm (R) issued an Executive Order 22-09 rescinding the public health emergency disaster declaration for COVID-19. 

For more information, contact NACDS’ Mary Staples at 817-442-1155.

2022-03-11T10:33:42-05:00March 11, 2022|Indiana|

Iowa

The Department of Health and Human Services issued INFORMATIONAL LETTER NO. 2322-MC-FFS announcing three Program Integrity (PI)/Payment Error Rate Measurement (PERM) quarterly training sessions for Medicaid Providers. Sessions will be held via Zoom and details are available in the letter. Providers only need to attend one training session. For those unable to attend, session recordings will be posted to the department’s website.  

 Also in Iowa, the Department of Health and Human Services issued INFORMATIONAL LETTER NO. 2320-FFS announcing the 2022 Refund Address. 

Also in Iowa, the Department of Health and Human Services issued INFORMATIONAL LETTER NO. 2316-MC-FFS announcing new Vaccine for Children (VFC) Program Codes. 

Also in Iowa, the Department of Health and Human Services issued INFORMATIONAL LETTER NO. 2324-MC-FFS-CVS stating that several monoclonal antibodies are no longer authorized for use and may not be administered for treatment or post-exposure prevention of COVID-19 under the EUA until further notice by the FDA. 

Finally in Iowa, Gov. Kim Reynolds (R) announced numerous appointments to the state’s boards and commissions including the following appointments to the Board of Pharmacy: Dane Nealson, Story; Kathy Stone, Harrison; Bob Egeland, Polk and Joan Skogstrom, Polk.

For more information, contact NACDS’ Sandra Guckian at 703-774-4801.

2022-03-11T10:33:05-05:00March 11, 2022|Iowa|

Maryland

The Department of Health (MDH) is currently accepting applications and nominations for physicians and pharmacists to serve on the Medicaid Program’s Pharmacy and Therapeutics (P&T) Committee beginning in May 2022. The application deadline has been extended, please submit all applications no later than March 18. All interested applicants are required to submit a formal application through the MDH’s Office of Appointments and Executive Nominations. Please email Mangesh Joglekar at Mangesh.Joglekar@maryland.gov for further information.

For more information, contact NACDS’ Jill McCormack at 717-592-8977.

2022-03-11T10:31:18-05:00March 11, 2022|Maryland|

Minnesota

Several bills have been introduced to advance NACDS’ Scope of Business Campaign. HF 4008 and SF 3823 would provide payment parity for pharmacy-based services and HF 4009 would update the states’ pharmacy immunization and testing authority to match the PREP Act.  

Also in Minnesota, the House Health Finance and Policy Committee heard HF 3854, allowing pharmacists to prescribe HIV prevention medications. NACDS and our in-state partners were instrumental in forming a coalition of stakeholders that is proactively advancing the bill. Committee members had no major concerns and there was no opposition voiced at the hearing from the medical community. The committee held the bill over for possible inclusion in an omnibus committee bill. 

For more information, contact NACDS’ Jill McCormack at 717-592-8977.

2022-03-11T10:29:25-05:00March 11, 2022|Minnesota|

New York

The Office of Health Insurance Programs of the New York State Department of Health has approved the release of the February 2022 Medicaid Update. You may also go straight to an article or topic that pertains to you by selecting from the current issue’s table of contents below.  

Policy and Billing 

All Providers 

Pharmacy 

For more information, please contact NACDS’ Ben Pearlman at 617-515-2603.

2022-03-11T10:23:51-05:00March 11, 2022|New York|

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