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So far Michael Silber has created 2507 blog entries.

Oregon

A record 9.7% of kindergartners claimed nonmedical exemptions from the state's school vaccination requirements for the 2024-2025 school year, the highest rate ever recorded, Oregon Health Authority announced. The increase continues an upward trend from 8.8% in 2024, when Oregon had the fourth-highest nonmedical exemption rate in the United States, behind Idaho, Alaska and Utah, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC). National data for the current school year are not yet available. 

Also in Oregon, effective May 21, the Oregon Health Authority amended prior authorization (PA) criteria implementing recommendations from Drug Utilization Review (DUR) / Pharmacy & Therapeutics (P&T) Action. The Authority needed to implement changes to the Preferred Drug List and Prior Authorization Criteria to ensure the safe and appropriate use of cost-effective prescription drugs for the Oregon Health Plan's fee-for-service recipients, based on the P&T Committee recommendations. 

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

2025-05-22T16:44:29-04:00May 22, 2025|Oregon|

Texas

SB 1236, PBM reform legislation that provides fair and transparent contract protections for pharmacies, requires that a group number identifying the plan be on the enrollee's identification card, audit protections and ensures compliance with existing laws, passed unanimously approved by both houses and sent to Gov. Greg Abbott (R) to sign into law. 

Also in Texas, the House passed HB 3540 (SB 254), a bill that authorizes pharmacists to order and administer all childhood vaccines to individuals five years of age and older (three years of age and older for flu & COVID) and allows pharmacists to delegate vaccine administration to a certified technician. The bill is supported by the Texas Medical Association, the Texas Pediatric Society and all pharmacy groups. It was referred to the Senate Health and Human Services Committee awaiting a hearing. 

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

2025-05-22T16:43:33-04:00May 22, 2025|Texas|

Washington

The Pharmacy Quality Assurance Commission met on May 22. The meeting materials are available online. There was a discussion on the Commission waiving certain staffing rules allowing out-of-state pharmacists and technicians to remotely aid in the transfer of Rite Aid and Bartell’s prescriptions. The next meeting is scheduled for June 26.

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

2025-05-22T16:43:06-04:00May 22, 2025|Washington|

Alaska

Legislation that would expand access to care by giving pharmacists independent authority establishing a standard of care model allowing pharmacists to fill urgent care gaps by providing patient care services is pending in both the House and Senate. SB 147 was approved by the Senate Labor and Commerce Committee last week, and it was referred to the Finance Committee. HB 195A is awaiting a hearing in the House Labor and Commerce Committee.

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

2025-05-16T09:59:12-04:00May 16, 2025|Alaska|

Colorado

Prior to the General Assembly adjourning on May 7, lawmakers passed several bills of interest to pharmacies, including:   

  • HB25-1094, governing PBM practices – Allowing a PBM to earn income derived from a flat-dollar service fee assessment and prohibits a PBM from earning income based on the cost of a prescription drug; prohibiting a PBM from designing a formulary to favor a certain branded pharmaceutical or biologic; requiring a PBM to credit income from a source other than a flat-dollar service fee to a health insurance carrier or a self-funded health benefit plan beneficiary; setting the amount that a PBM shall reimburse an unaffiliated pharmacy or a PBM-affiliated retail, mail order or specialty pharmacy for a prescription drug; and requiring a PBM to make certain documents and data available to a carrier, a self-funded plan or the insurance commissioner upon request and authorizing the health benefit plan to execute an audit to validate compliance with the contract.
  • HB25-1222, the bill's rate floor and telepharmacy provisions only apply to independent pharmacies, passed out of both houses on May 1. For the purposes of this bill, "rural independent pharmacies" are defined as a drug outlet that is privately owned by at least one licensed pharmacist with no ownership interest by or affiliation with a chain pharmacy or a publicly traded prescription drug outlet. The bill will reimburse independents not less than NADAC, plus pay a dispensing fee. It also includes audit protection provisions, and it exempts independent pharmacies from the direct supervision rule if the initial interpretation and final evaluation of the prescription are done by a pharmacist in person or remotely. 

Finally in Colorado, SB25-045, legislation that requires school of public health to analyze model legislation for implementing a single-payer, nonprofit, publicly financed, and privately delivered universal health-care payment system for Colorado that directly compensates a provider. A report detailing its findings must be submitted to the General Assembly by December 31, 2026. The bill creates the Statewide Health Care Analysis Collaborative under the Department of Health Care Policy and Financing (HCPF) to assist the university in its report. 

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

2025-05-16T09:58:22-04:00May 16, 2025|Colorado|

Connecticut

On May 12 and 13, the General Assembly procedurally moved SB 11 and HB 7192 through their respective committees. This legislation came out of the bi-cameral, bi-partisan Prescription Drug Taskforce that began last fall. Amongst the provisions, HB 7192 would provide that PBMs owe a fiduciary duty to health carriers; prohibit a PBM to charge a health plan a contracted price that differs from what the PBM pays the pharmacy for the services; expand the contents of the insurance commissioner’s annual report on health carrier rebates to include certain information on how rebates affected cost sharing; and require the insurance commissioner to require carriers to annually report on pricing offered to, and profit generated between, the carrier and any PBM or mail-order pharmacy. NACDS participated in the taskforce and supported both bills during the committee process. NACDS, with the Connecticut Association of Chain Pharmacies, participates with the Connecticut Patients Not PBMs coalition, made up of pharmaceutical companies, patient advocacy groups and pharmacy industry peers. The Connecticut legislative session ends firmly on June 4.  

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

2025-05-16T09:57:45-04:00May 16, 2025|Connecticut|

Delaware

On May 21, the Board of Pharmacy will hold its next regular meeting. The agenda includes: 

  1. President’s report from Dr. Coffield
  2. Executive Director’s Report
  3. Application Review
  4. Pharmacist Application Review
  5. Committee Reports
    1. Legislative Committee Report 2.
    2. Professional Liaison Reports
    3. Controlled Substance Liaison Report
  6. Inspection Report from Pharmacist Compliance Officer- Dr. Matthew Moritz, PharmD
  7. PMP Report from Pharmacist Administrator- Dr. Jason Slavoski, PharmD
  8. Pharmacist/Pharmacy Ratification Listing
  9. Pharmacist In Charge/Consultant Pharmacist Interviews
  10. Pharmacist & Pharmacy Discussion /Action Items
  11. DHSS/DPH Discussion Items

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

2025-05-16T09:57:19-04:00May 16, 2025|Delaware|
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