Effective October 28, the Department of Health Care Services (DHCS) lifted its moratorium on the enrollment of pharmacy providers for the Medi-Cal fee-for-service program in Los Angeles County. For more information, contact the Provider Enrollment Message Center at 916-323-1945 or submit your question via e-mail or NACDS’ Mary Staples at 817-442-1155.

Also in California…In mid-November, DHCS will publish an article in the Medi-Cal Pharmacy Updates bulletin informing providers seeking the higher of the two professional dispensing fees on drug claims for Fiscal Year 2019-20 that the next attestation will start in January 2019 for calendar year 2018 claim volume. If your company would like to centralize the coordination of attestations, please contact Trudi Balestreri.

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

Pharmacies installing or discontinuing drug take-back collection receptacles can now electronically notify the Board of Pharmacy. Requirements for drug take-back services, including collection receptacles and mail-back envelopes, are in California Code of Regulations, Title 16, Article 9.1.

Also in California…The Department of Health Care Services (DHCS) announced plans to implement a new Medi-Cal fee-for-service cost-based reimbursement methodology in late 2018. After system implementation, DHCS intends to make retroactive adjustments for all claims with dates of service between April 1, 2017, and the date of system implementation.

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

As required by AB 40 that was signed into law last year, the Department of Justice (DOJ) established a method of system integration whereby approved healthcare practitioners and pharmacists may use a qualified health information technology system to access information in the CURES database. This week, DOJ launched the CURES Information Exchange Web Service (IEWS), creating a webpage that provides instructions on how to sign up.

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

Gov. Jerry Brown (D) signed into law AB 2789. Effective January 1, 2022, this newly enacted law will require healthcare practitioners authorized to issue prescriptions to have the capability to e-prescribe and would require pharmacies to have the capability to receive these electronic prescriptions. The bill also requires those healthcare practitioners to transmit prescriptions electronically, unless specified exemptions are met. The bill does not require the pharmacy to verify that a written, oral, or faxed prescription satisfies the specified exemptions. Please also see the article in the main body of CEO Issue Update.

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

The Legislature adjourned on August 31. Numerous bills of interest to chain pharmacy have been sent to Gov. Jerry Brown (D) who has until Sunday, September 30 to sign into law, veto, or allow them to become law without his signature.

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

The Department of Justice which operates the prescription drug monitoring program called CURES is hosting a webinar on Tuesday, August 28 to educate approved healthcare practitioners and pharmacists on how to utilize a new technology system to access information in the CURES database. Registration is available online.

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

On Wednesday, August 29, the Office of Statewide Health Planning and Development is holding a hearing on proposed rules to require prescription drug manufacturers to notify and disclose information relating to the cost and pricing of prescription drugs.

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

On June 28, the California Legislature passed and the Governor signed into law AB 375, which is sweeping new privacy legislation that will place numerous additional privacy requirements on businesses and give consumers broad, new rights. This legislation, though officially opposed by the business community, was presented by legislators to the industry on June 21 as a “take it or leave it” alternative to the Consumer Privacy Initiative, which would have appeared on the November ballot.

Effective Wednesday, January 1, 2020, the law gives consumers various rights with respect to their personal information collected by businesses—the right to access it, the right to delete it, the right to know what information/categories of information are collected, the right to know whether that information is being sold or shared, the right to stop a business from selling that info and the right to equal service and price. It also contains a private right of action for data breaches and gives enforcement and regulatory powers to the Attorney General.

AB 375 impacts any business with gross annual revenues over $25 million that collects consumers’ personal information. Compliance will consist of new notice and disclosure requirements, privacy policy revisions and limitations on what information can be collected, shared and sold.

Also in California…Gov. Edmund Brown, Jr. (D), announced the re-appointment of public member Ricardo Sanchez, and new appointment of acute care pharmacist Maria Serpa to the Board of Pharmacy.

Also in California…The executive officer of the Board of Pharmacy, Virginia Herold, announced that she will be retiring at the end of the year. Prior to assuming the position in January 2007, she served as assistant executive officer of the Board for 16.5 years and interim executive officer for seven months.

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

SB 1442, legislation sponsored by United Food & Commercial Workers Union that requires no pharmacist to be left alone in a store, was successfully amended recently. As amended, the bill will both refer to “community pharmacy” and include an itemization of exempted entities to make very clear which pharmacies must comply. Redrafted language regarding the bill’s core requirement will read that an employee must be “made available to assist the pharmacist at all times.” This redrafted language was negotiated to ensure that any employee in the store can assist the pharmacist, if needed, and not just a pharmacy technician or pharmacy clerk. The final language exempts the new requirements from the misdemeanor provisions without further specifying remedies, essentially retaining the Board of Pharmacy’s enforcement options while ensuring violations won’t constitute a new crime.

Also in California…AB 2789, legislation by Assemblymember Jim Wood (D) sponsored by the Board of Pharmacy that will require all prescriptions to be transmitted electronically by Saturday, January 1, 2022, was again amended in the Senate Appropriations Committee on July 3.

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