The Vendor Drug Program announced that they will implement the Rinvoq (upadacitinib) clinical prior authorization criteria on March 3.  The prior authorization is optional for Medicaid managed care. The Pharmacy Clinical Prior Authorization Assistance Chart shows the prior authorization each MCO uses and how those authorizations relate to the authorizations used for traditional Medicaid claim processing and is updated quarterly. 

Also in Texas... The deadline to participate in program year 2019 of the Texas Medicaid Electronic Health Record Incentive/Promoting Interoperability Program is Feb. 29. To learn more, visit the EHR website. 

Also in Texas... The Health and Human Service Commission published the quarterly Specialty Drug List. 

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

HEB pharmacist Doug Read was appointed to serve a three year term on the newly created Prescription Monitoring Program Advisory Committee charged with making recommendations to the Texas State Board of Pharmacy regarding operational improvements to the Prescription Monitoring Program, resolutions to identified data concerns, methods to improve data accuracy, integrity and security, and ways to reduce technical difficulties, as well as the addition of any new data sets or services to the information provided or the access to that information.

Also in Texas… House Speaker Dennis Bonnen (R) issued a press release announcing the creation of an 11-member House Select Committee on Statewide Healthcare Costs. The Speaker will serve as Chair. NACDS will closely monitor and engage in the Committee’s activities during the interim.

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

At the November 5th Board of Pharmacy meeting, pharmacists from NACDS, HEB, Kroger and Walgreens advocated for the Board to adopt a proposed rule to eliminate technician ratios which are currently set at 1:4 for Class A retail community pharmacies. The testimony focused on the lack of evidence regarding safety issues, changing workload demands, and that one size does not fit for all pharmacies. After a lengthy discussion, the Board directed staff to bring both eliminating technician ratios and expanding technician duties issues back for discussion at their May 5, 2020 meeting. 

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

The Texas Board of Pharmacy is meeting on Tuesday, November 5, 2019. There are several issues on the agenda of interest to NACDS, including rulemaking for legislation chain pharmacy supported, discussion on the strategic plan for 2021-2025, and proposed rules to eliminate technician ratios. For more information go to –  https://www.pharmacy.texas.gov/files_pdf/BN/Nov19/Agenda.pdf

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

Gov. Greg Abbott (R) appointed Donna Montemayor, R.Ph. with HEB, and Rick Tish, a public member from Spring, to serve a 6-year term on the Board of Pharmacy. The Governor also reappointed Bradley Miller, Ph.T.R. and Donnie Lewis, R.Ph. to serve a second term.

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

The Texas Health and Human Services’ (HHSC) Vendor Drug Program (VDP) held a press conference in which they unveiled their business plan, including a roadmap to work more closely with pharmacies and other providers to improve benefits and services for Medicaid patients. Among other things, VDP announced that, in addition to reimbursing pharmacies for long-acting injectables, flu and vivitrol, Medicaid would soon begin paying pharmacies for the administration of naloxone too. For more information go to – https://hhs.texas.gov/about-hhs/communications-events/news/2019/10/hhs-unveils-blueprint-a-healthy-texas 

Also in Texas… The Texas Interagency Advisory Committee held a meeting to discuss the waiver process for the implementation of HB 2174, the new electronic prescribing of controlled substances law chain pharmacy worked to pass earlier this year that will go into effect in January of 2021.

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

The Prescription Monitoring Program’s Interagency Advisory Committee Group will meet on Tuesday, October 15 to discuss implementing certain requirements in several new laws, including setting standards for waivers from the electronic prescription requirements in HB 2174.

Also in Texas… In response to a request from the State Board of Pharmacy, NACDS submitted comments identifying issues that the Board should address as it works to develop its Strategic Plan for Fiscal Years 2021 through 2025. Among these issues, NACDS urged the Board to implement policy changes that expand the scope of services that pharmacists can provide to Texans, optimize the use of pharmacy technicians, enable pharmacies to utilize new technologies and implement innovate practices to better serve their patients and to address other burdensome provisions in the existing rules and regulations.

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

In response to a request from the Texas Health and Human Services Commission’s (HHSC) Vendor Drug Program (VDP), NACDS submitted a 10-page letter detailing Medicaid cost-saving suggestions. The VDP was charged with the responsibility of evaluating strategies and submitting a report with findings and recommendations for achieving cost savings to the Senate Finance Committee, House Committee on Appropriations, Legislative Budget Board, Governor and permanent standing committees in the House of Representatives and Senate with jurisdiction over HHSC by Tuesday, September 1, 2020.

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

In advance of the August 6^th Board of Pharmacy meeting, NACDS submitted a letter approved by our members operating in Texas recommending the Board eliminate pharmacy technician ratios and expand duties. After much discussion, the Board decided to move forward on all of our recommendations and directed staff to draft a proposed rule for the November 5^th meeting that would include expanding technician duties to allow techs to (1) accept a verbal order, (2) transfer a prescription, and (3) contact a prescriber to clarify a prescription. The proposed rule would also eliminate the technician to pharmacist’s ratio which is currently set at 1:4. The Board also directed staff to consult with the Medical Board regarding our recommendation to allow pharmacy technicians to administer vaccinations, and bring back to the Board at the November information from the Medical Board about delegating this task to these paraprofessionals, not a proposed rule.

Also in Texas… On July 17, the TSBP upgraded the prescription monitoring program (PMP) to allow all approved users access to an advanced analytics and patient support tool called NarxCare. In addition to the existing PMP functionality, NarxCare will aggregate and analyze prescription information from providers and pharmacies and present visual, interactive information, as well as advanced analytic insights, machine learning risk scores and more.

Also in Texas… The budget bill signed by Gov. Greg Abbott (R) included the funding necessary to integrate the state’s PMP into pharmacy data systems. The TSBP wants prescribers and dispensers to know that with statewide integration, they will no longer have to interrupt their current workflow to access the PMP. An overview of the integration process, along with informational resources, can be found on the TSBP website.

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