Pharmacists push for enhanced role in post-pandemic life
March 10, 2022
Pharmacies that say they’ve been a linchpin in the U.S. pandemic response are pressing for key regulatory changes and higher payment rates to cement their enhanced role in patient care.
Why it matters: Pharmacies have become fixtures of pandemic life through testing, vaccinations and, increasingly, dispensing antivirals. But pharmacists say they’re being shortchanged, because they can’t prescribe COVID pills and receive prohibitively low fees to dispense them.
NCPA to CMS: Part D Rule Will Fail to Achieve Goals Without Changes
March 7, 2022
In comments submitted today, National Community Pharmacists Association CEO B. Douglas Hoey, pharmacist, MBA, said independent pharmacy has strong concerns about the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services’ proposed Medicare Part D rule, which includes the latest efforts of the agency to lower out of pocket drug costs for patients and address pharmacy direct and indirect remuneration fees.
Hoey wrote that without incorporating the changes suggested by NCPA, the proposed rule “will fail to achieve its intended goals.” NCPA has advocated for pharmacy DIR fee reform over the past decade, with independent pharmacies having identified this issue for many years as their No. 1 challenge and the biggest threat to their survival.