NACDS’ Congressional statement keys on lowering patients’ costs at pharmacy counter, reducing overall healthcare costs, and fostering pharmacy viability by preventing below-cost reimbursement.
Morning Consult today published an opinion piece by the NACDS entitled “DIR Fee Reform: Lining Up Another Win for Patients on Drug Costs.”
NACDS today submitted a statement to the U.S. House of Representatives Committee on Ways and Means for the hearing titled “The Cost of Rising Prescription Drug Prices.”
NACDS and the National Community Pharmacists Association (NCPA) today lauded 24 patient and consumer groups for advocating for pharmacy direct and indirect remuneration (DIR) fee reform.
NACDS and the National Community Pharmacists Association (NCPA) today praised a bipartisan Senate letter to Health and Human Services Secretary Alex Azar.
Patient advocacy groups and allies—including NACDS member companies, state associations and others—have joined together in urging HHS to implement DIR reform.
Based on insights from member pharmacies that serve as the front lines of healthcare delivery, the National Association of Chain Drug Stores (NACDS) has submitted extensive and thoroughly documented comments to the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services in support of the agency’s proposal to reform direct and indirect remuneration (DIR) fees – reform that relates directly to reducing patients’ out-of-pocket drug costs.
KEY FACTS
“The proposed changes are consistent with several of the Administration’s priorities, including the goal to reduce prescription drug costs for patients; improve the Medicare program; and use ‘[Department of Health and Human Services] programs to build a value-driven healthcare system. We therefore strongly urge CMS to use its current authority to further update the Part D Program by implementing these much-needed reforms in the final rule…NACDS members’ experiences confirm that the abuses and harms of pharmacy DIR fees are genuine. And the situation is rapidly growing worse, as abusive pharmacy DIR fees continue to grow exponentially. Pharmacies are calling on CMS to eliminate these and other harms now, by implementing reforms to eliminate pharmacy DIR fees.”
– NACDS’ comments to CMS READ FULL PRESS RELEASE READ COMMENTS
Each NACDS member company has a powerful opportunity to submit official comments to the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) in support of direct and indirect remuneration (DIR) fee reform concepts described in the agency’s proposed rule, “Modernizing Part D and Medicare Advantage to Lower Drug Prices and Reduce Out-of-Pocket Expenses.” The deadline to submit your company’s comments is January 25, 2019, at 5:00 p.m. EST.
When joining in this important movement, please keep in mind it is more effective for your company’s comments to reflect the authentic voice of the company, rather than to resemble a template. The main point to convey – with your company’s own voice – is that DIR fee reform is vital for helping to reduce patients’ out-of-pocket drug costs at the pharmacy counter, and for the viability of pharmacy patient care and the value that this care creates in the form of reductions in overall healthcare costs. Please urge CMS to take swift action on the DIR fee reform aspects of “file code CMS-4180-P” – and to assure that DIR fee reform is implemented for plan year 2020.
Other tips for submitting impactful comments include:
In the development of your comments, please feel free to contact Tom O’Donnell, NACDS’ senior vice president of government affairs and public policy, at (703) 837-4216 or todonnell@nacds.org.
Thank you in advance for planning now to submit your company’s comments for arrival at CMS by the January 25, 2019, 5:00 p.m. EST deadline.
NACDS, WSPA, and NCPA applaud action by the federal Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) to reject Washington State’s below-cost and lowest-in-the-nation Medicaid pharmacy dispensing fees.
NACDS expressed support for, and provided further input, on CMS’ proposed rule, which involves issues including direct and indirect remuneration fees; e-prescribing; medication therapy management; opioid abuse; and fostering pharmacy access.
