The New York Health Commissioner approved the recommendations of the DUR Board developed at the July 2021 meeting. The meeting summary on the DOH website has been updated to include the Commissioner’s final determinations.
For more information, please contact NACDS’ Ben Pearlman at 617-515-2603.
The North Carolina General Assembly has passed, and Governor Cooper has signed into law, legislation that authorizes qualified immunizing pharmacists to administer long-acting injectable medications to patients age 18 and older pursuant to prescription. This new authority becomes effective on October 1, 2021. Board staff has prepared a guidance document that summarizes the new authority and how pharmacists may exercise it.
For more information, contact NACDS’ Leigh Knotts at 803-243-7207.
Earlier this year, the Ohio Department of Medicaid (ODM) announced the selection of seven managed care organizations (MCOs) who will partner with the Department to provide Medicaid Services. The seven MCOs are: AmeriHealth Caritas Ohio, Inc.; Anthem Blue Cross and Blue Shield; Buckeye Community Health Plan; CareSource Ohio, Inc.; Humana Health Plan of Ohio, Inc.; Molina Healthcare of Ohio, Inc; and UnitedHealthcare Community Plan of Ohio, Inc. Providers who are interested in contracting with them are encouraged to contact them. Contact information for the MCOs can be found on the Resources for Providers webpage of the next generation website.
For more information, contact NACDS’ Jill McCormack at 717-592-8977.
The Board of Pharmacy issued information regarding physician assistants (PA) prescribing Schedule II controlled substances prescriptions. For more information, contact pharmacy@pharmacy.ok.gov.
For more information, contact NACDS’ Sandra Guckian at 703-774-4801.
The Board of Pharmacy issued a notice requesting stakeholder fiscal impact information related to proposed requirements for “Proper Storage of Drugs”, “Remote Dispensing Site Pharmacies” and “Telework”. Note: The board reminds pharmacies that some information they may want to provide may be proprietary, and any information provided to the Board of Pharmacy becomes a public record. By October 6, please provide comments to pharmacy.rulemaking@bop.oregon.gov.
For more information, contact NACDS’ Sandra Guckian at 703-774-4801.
Gov. Wolf (D) has signed a bill that extends COVID-19 related pharmacy waivers due to expire on September 30 until March 31, 2022. It does not extend the waivers that were already terminated by the Department of State prior to September 30th. Since this was a blanket extension of the current waivers, the bill did not go further than the state waivers to fill in the gaps to match the PREP Act allowances. We will continue advocating for the passage of bills that match the PREP Act.
Also in Pennsylvania, NACDS reminds members that beginning October 1, the state will cover copays for Naloxone prescriptions for patients hesitant to pick up the prescription due to cost, regardless of the type of insurance coverage. Please refer to the submission specifications and program bulletin for more information.
Also in Pennsylvania, the Board of Pharmacy has published proposed regulations providing for pharmacy technician registration based on Act 140 of 2020. Keeping in mind that any substantive changes will require legislation, please send any comments you may have to Jill McCormack by October 11.
For more information, contact NACDS’ Jill McCormack at 717-592-8977.
NACDS provided comments encouraging the Board of Pharmacy (TSBP) to include in their FY 2023-2027 strategic plan statute and rule changes to permanently codify the scope of practice expansion authorized under the PREP Act for all pharmacy personnel, and to further modernize scope of practice for Texas pharmacists to allow for practices now authorized in other states. We also urged the Board to modernize their in-person counseling rules to permanently allow the option of telephonic counseling that has allowed pharmacies to deploy innovative workflow models to meet increased patient demand for pharmacy services.
For more information, contact NACDS’ Mary Staples at 817-442-1155.
The Health Care Authority’s (HCA) Apple Health (Medicaid) announced that they are implementing changes to the State Maximum Allowable Costs (SMAC) list for the fee-for-service (FFS) Prescription Drug Program on November 1, 2021.
Also in Washington, HCA is publishing quarterly updates to billing guides starting on October 1, 2021.
For more information, contact NACDS’ Mary Staples at 817-442-1155.
The Wisconsin Department of Health Services (DHS) and Pharmacy Society of Wisconsin (PSW) currently are engaged in logistical planning for how assisted living facilities (ALF) will access COVID-19 booster doses.
DHS and PSW are asking pharmacy partners to please fill out a short survey to guide Wisconsin’s strategy around booster dose planning for this critical population. Fill out the survey here.
For more information, please contact NACDS’ Ben Pearlman at 617-515-2603.