Advocacy

KENILWORTH, N.J. — Nurse practitioners play a crucial role in helping patients decode medical information, according to the findings of a recent Merck Manuals survey. The survey of 210 NPs, conducted at a recent medical conference, revealed that most (88%) believe they spend at least half of appointment times educating patients on diagnoses, treatments and prescriptions.

You may have seen the news this week about an interim report of the President’s Commission on Combating Drug Addiction and the Opioid Crisis. The Commission — chaired by Governor Chris Christie — included among its initial recommendations one that it describes as “first and most urgent”: declaring a national emergency on this issue.

WASHINGTON — The president’s Commission on Combating Drug Addiction and the Opioid Crisis on Monday issued a draft of its report to the president, in which it lays out potential ways to combat the epidemic of prescription drug abuse and misuse. At the top of the commission’s list is their push to get President Donald Trump to declare a national emergency under the Public Health Service Act or the Stafford Act.

WASHINGTON — The National Association of Chain Drug Stores has shared its thoughts on the proposed Border Adjustment Tax with members of the Senate Finance Committee ahead of the committee’s hearing this week.  In its comments, the organization outlined the impact that the BAT would have on pharmacies and patients.

BOSTON — Rite Aid's Health Dialog on Monday introduced comprehensive Medication Therapy Management services for health plans. The new MTM services combine analytics with skilled health coaching to help patients overcome barriers to proper medication use, identify medication-related problems, promote coordination of care and improve medication management success.

WASHINGTON — The Drug Enforcement Administration recently clarified for pharmacists the protocol for forwarding unfilled prescriptions for controlled substances. The DEA’s associate section chief of the liaison and policy section of the DEA’s Diversion Control division Loren Miller clarified that an original e-prescription can be forwarded one DEA-registered retail pharmacy to another in the event they can’t fill it for any reason.

ALEXANDRIA, Va. — NACDS has commissioned a poll of TRICARE beneficiaries that found broad interest for the TRICARE Acquisition Cost Parity Pilot Program for Retail Pharmacy. The pilot, included in the 2017 federal budget plan, would allow TRICARE beneficiaries to get their prescriptions from retail pharmacies, rather than by mail order or through military treatment facilities.

VALLEY FORGE, Pa. — Good Neighbor Pharmacy on Friday announced a new tool for independent pharmacists designed to help them plan around direct and indirect remuneration, or DIR, fees and hidden cash flow issues surrounding them.