Michael Silber – Page 216

Colorado

In January 22, the Board of Pharmacy will be seeking stakeholder input on the following proposed draft rules to regulate the practice of pharmacy.

Rule 5.01.40 and 5.01.50—The purpose of these proposed amendments is to address the minimum hourly operations and security requirements for a pharmacy when a pharmacy does not possess prescription drug or controlled substance stocks.
Rule 6.00.00—The purpose of these proposed amendments is to address drug therapy management and how this practice may correlate with collaborative pharmacy practice.
Rule 17.00.00 and Appendix A—The purpose of these proposed amendments is to address collaborative pharmacy practice and how this practice may correlate with drug therapy management.
Rule 20.00.00—The purpose of the proposed amendments is to allow a fulfillment pharmacy to deliver a prescription directly to the patient in lieu of returning the filled prescription to the originating pharmacy for dispensing to the patient of non-controlled substances.

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

Michael Silber2018-02-15T12:30:12-05:00January 4, 2018|Colorado|

NACDS and the Connecticut Association of Community Pharmacy met with Rodrick Marriott, Director, Connecticut Department of Consumer Protection, Drug Control Division, to discuss the January 1, 2018 launch of mandatory e-prescribing for controlled substances Schedules II through V prescriptions. Subsequently, the Drug Control Division published an FAQ that included a statement noting that “a pharmacist is NOT required to verify that a prescriber has a waiver from the requirement to electronically prescribe, or properly falls under one of the other exceptions from the requirement to electronically prescribe. Pharmacists may continue to dispense medications from otherwise valid written, oral, or fax prescriptions that are consistent with current laws and regulations.”

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

Michael Silber2018-02-15T12:29:18-05:00January 4, 2018|Connecticut|

Illinois

Gov. Bruce Rauner (R) signed into law SB 772, effective January 1, 2018, requiring prescribers to register with the Prescription Monitoring Program (PMP) and, with certain exceptions, to document their check of the PMP before prescribing Schedule II controlled substances.

For more information, contact NACDS’ Joel Kurzman at 847-905-0555.

Michael Silber2018-02-15T12:28:28-05:00January 4, 2018|Illinois|

Michigan

Lt. Gov. Brian Calley (R) signed into law a package of legislation intended to address the opioid epidemic and several bills of which directly pertain to pharmacy. SB 166requires prescribers by Friday, June 1, 2018 to register with the Prescription Monitoring Program and, with certain exceptions, to obtain reports for controlled substance prescriptions of greater than a three-day supply. SB 274 allows pharmacists in certain circumstances to partially fill a controlled substances prescription and prohibits prescribers from prescribing more than a seven-day supply in a seven-day period when treating a patient for acute pain.

For more information, contact NACDS’ Joel Kurzman at 847-905-0555.

Michael Silber2018-02-15T12:27:48-05:00January 4, 2018|Michigan|

Minnesota

The e-Health Advisory Committee issued its final recommendations to Gov. Mark Dayton (DFL) to address the opioid epidemic. Of note is the recommended goal of increasing electronic prescribing of controlled substances from its current 20% to 80% by 2020 and to develop and implement policy options for enforcement if the goal is not met.

For more information, contact NACDS’ Joel Kurzman at 847-905-0555.

Michael Silber2023-06-22T11:05:20-04:00January 4, 2018|Minnesota|

New Jersey

NACDS submitted comments to the Board of Pharmacy urging regulators to reconsider plans to require compliance with USP Ch. <800> by July 1, 2018, ahead of the USP’s December 1, 2019 effective date. At its December meeting, the Board heeded the concerns raised by NACDS and others in the pharmacy community about early implementation and opted to delay compliance until December 2019.

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

Michael Silber2018-02-15T12:26:30-05:00January 4, 2018|New Jersey|

New York

CMS has approved the State Department of Health’s Medicaid State Plan Amendment for cost-based reimbursement plus a $10.00 professional dispensing fee retroactive to April 1, 2017 for the Medicaid fee-for-service program. The new professional dispensing fee is $10.00 per prescription or written order by a practitioner and does not apply to over-the-counter products that do not meet the definition of a covered outpatient drug per section 1927K of the Social Security Act. The following are changes to product reimbursement in the Medicaid fee-for-service program:

Generic Drugs: The lower of NADAC or WAC-17.5% if no NADAC exists; or the Federal Upper Limit (FUL); or State Maximum Acquisition Cost (SMAC); or the dispensing pharmacy’s usual and customary price charged to the general public.
Brand Name Drugs: The lower of NADAC or WAC-3 & 3/10% if no NADAC exists; or the dispensing pharmacy’s usual and customary price charged to the general public.

The state will initiate the reimbursement changes in two phases. In the near future, the State intends to give pharmacies two weeks’ notice that the new rate will be initiated on all Medicaid fee-for-service claims. After the successful roll out of the claims processing with the new rates, the State will begin a retroactive adjustment of past claims. The adjustment will be spread out over a period of time.

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

Michael Silber2018-02-15T12:25:39-05:00January 4, 2018|New York|

Oklahoma

During the second special legislative session held in mid-December, lawmakers approved an additional appropriation of $17.7 million to fund the Oklahoma Health Care Authority (OHCA), including the state’s Medicaid program. These funds, coupled with the $22.8 million that was provided when Gov. Mary Fallin (R) approved sections of the appropriations bill on November 17, give the OHCA enough money to operate at current levels until April 2018. To officially withdraw the six percent across the-board Medicaid provider rate reductions that were approved by the OHCA Board on December 1 and scheduled to be effective January 1, 2018, the OHCA held a special board meeting on December 29 to reverse the proposed provider rate reductions.

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

Michael Silber2018-02-15T12:25:01-05:00January 4, 2018|Oklahoma|

Pennsylvania

On December 22,2017, Gov. Tom Wolf (D) signed SB 728 into law which will allow a prescriber to forego querying the Prescription Monitoring Program database when they prescribe a nonnarcotic Schedule V controlled substance that treats an epilepsy or seizure disorder to a patient. The law will be effective 60 days from the date of signing.

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

Michael Silber2018-02-15T12:24:06-05:00January 4, 2018|Pennsylvania|

About Michael Silber