NCPA pinpoints three regulations that inhibit job growth among independents

ALEXANDRIA, Va. — The National Community Pharmacists Association on Friday identified three problematic regulations that inhibit job creation.



The Medicare Part B diabetes testing supplies competitive bidding program threatens patient access to these medical necessities, the association noted, and the 340B Drug Discount program also represents a challenge to community pharmacy due to its loose eligibility criteria. Lastly, job creation can be inhibited by the fee-for-service Medicare enrollment/revalidation fees that many pharmacies have to pay twice.



The announcement came in response to a request from Rep. Darrell Issa, R-Calif., chair of the U.S. House Committee on Oversight and Government Reform, who recently contacted 200 business organizations seeking their insight on regulations that hurt job creation.



NCPA’s response letter details “the regulatory burdens faced by independent community pharmacies,” as well as “examples of rules and regulations where a federal agency did not fully and effectively comply with the rulemaking process.”



In addition to pinpointing those problematic regulations, the NCPA offered possible solutions. For example, the NCPA suggested in order to maintain seniors’ access to diabetes testing supplies NCPA supports a permanent exemption for independent community pharmacies as proposed in H.R. 1936, the Medicare Diabetes Access to Care Act that has been sponsored by Reps. Aaron Schock, R-Ill. and Peter Welch, D-Vt. To reform 340B NCPA supports explicitly closing the language loopholes that allows the programs prescriptions to be used for patients other than the intended recipients, which are uninsured and underinsured Americans. And to stop the double billing for Medicare Part B enrollment and revalidation, NCPA suggested that Congress review how the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services is interpreting the applicable statute.