Learn about the latest trends and activities through our blog posts.
The New York State Department of Financial Services has proposed new rules surrounding pharmacy benefit managers (PBMs) that deal with establishing definitions; licensing; contracting with pharmacies; acquisition of PBMs; consumer protections and audit regulations regarding PBMs.
Read MoreTwo pro-pharmacy bills continue to make their way through Congress.
Read MoreIllinois has enacted HB 3631, pro-pharmacy legislation sponsored by Senator Simmons. The new law prohibits pharmacy benefit managers from retaliating against pharmacists for disclosing information in government proceedings if they have reasonable cause to believe that the disclosed information is evidence of a violation of a state or federal law, rule, or regulation.
Read MoreJohnson and Johnson has filed a lawsuit in New Jersey federal district court, arguing that the new powers granted to Medicare to negotiate drug prices violates the First and Fifth Amendments of the U.S. Constitution. Medicare’s new power to negotiate comes from the recently enacted Inflation Reduction Act (IRA). Earlier suits by Merck, Bristol Myers Squibb, the U.S. Chamber of Commerce and PhRMA have made similar arguments.
Read MoreWe were pleased to be invited to Orlando, Florida to speak with IDN with our presentation titled “Price, Innovation & Policy: What’s on the Horizon for the Industry.
Read MoreWe speak with Deb Rockwell; Business Manager at Savages’ Drug in Fairfield, Maine about the importance of understanding pharmacy accounts receivable.
Read MoreIn an interview by Aislinn Antrim of Pharmacy Times called “Calling Them ‘Vanity Drugs,’ Some Insurers Refuse to Cover New Anti-Obesity Drugs,” Ron Lanton III, Esq., Partner at Lanton Law, discussed why insurers are refusing to cover new, highly effective anti-obesity drugs and how some prescribers are getting around the issue. Lanton said that this is a common issue across many different disease spaces and drug types, but some policy changes may be able to help.
Read MoreThe Federal Trade Commission (FTC) has come out aggressively against both pharmaceutical manufacturers and pharmacy benefit managers (PBMs). The agency has released its policy statement seen here, announcing that the agency “will ramp up enforcement against any illegal bribes and rebate schemes that block patients’ access to competing lower-cost drugs.”
Read MoreThe Pharmacy Benefit Manager Transparency Act of 2022 was introduced by Senate Commerce Science, and Transportation Committee Chair Maria Cantwell and Senate Judiciary Committee Ranking Member Chuck Grassley.
Read MoreCheck out our micro webinar on the upcoming FTC comment and period on pharmacy benefit managers.
Read MoreLanton Law spoke with Pharmacy Times about the possible market implications of the new Mark Cuban Cost Plus Drug Company.
Read MoreAccording to a December 1, 2021 press release, Representatives Carter (R-GA) and Gonzalez (D-TX) have reintroduced the Drug Price Transparency in Medicaid Act. The legislation “would limit the power of pharmacy benefit managers (PBMs) to artificially spike Medicaid drug prices. The Drug Price Transparency in Medicaid Act bans the use of spread pricing by middlemen (PBMs) in Medicaid managed care. PBMs drive up prescription drug costs without adding any value to the consumer.”
Read MoreThis week the 8th Circuit issued a decision in the case of Pharmaceutical Care Management Association v. Wehbi, which supported North Dakota’s legislative actions to regulate pharmacy benefit managers (PBMs). PCMA v. Wehbi is the first case at the federal appellate level since the landmark Rutledge v. PCMA decision last year that upheld Arkansas law also regulating PBMs.
Read MoreAccording to the FDA’s press release, “The U.S. Food and Drug Administration approved the first interchangeable biosimilar product to treat certain inflammatory diseases.”
Read MoreThe Governor has enacted Act No. 50 effective June 1, which seeks to ban “white bagging” in the state. White bagging is when a drug is delivered from an insurer’s preferred pharmacy to a physician’s office. This new law which is the first of its kind in the country provides that insurers cannot refuse to pay for physician-administered drugs to covered patients. Similar legislation has been seen in Massachusetts, New York and Texas.
Read MoreAt Lanton Law we are constantly on the watch for issues impacting our specialty, retail and LTC pharmacy clients including the issue of DIR fees. Clients utilize our advocacy and legal tools while discussing business strategy to combat an ever changing reimbursement environment.
Read MoreDrug prices have been fiercely debated in Congress and in various state capitols before COVID-19 brought everything to a halt. Vermont was the first state in the country to require pharmaceutical manufacturers to explain drug price increases. That initiative was followed by Maryland in 2019 as the state created its five member Prescription Drug Affordability Board to monitor prices. It seems now the attention is focused on Oregon.
Read MoreHealth and Human Services (HHS) has announced that the Trump administration’s directive that would have implemented the drug rebate rule against pharmacy benefit managers (PBMs).
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