NCPA Responds to U.S. Supreme Court Ruling on Health Care Law

ALEXANDRIA, Va., June 28, 2012 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- National Community Pharmacists Association (NCPA) CEO B. Douglas Hoey, RPh, MBA, issued the following statement regarding the U.S. Supreme Court ruling on the health care reform law – the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act:

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"America's health care system should be less costly, more efficient and drive better outcomes for patients. Pharmacists have shown, when properly utilized, that the aforementioned principles can be achieved through the medication counseling and other services they provide to millions of patients. During the health care reform debate NCPA played a constructive role in offering recommendations for provisions that could improve the care independent community pharmacies offer, with a premium being placed on maintaining access.

"We strived for more coordination with health care providers across the spectrum; reforms that embrace the free market ethos of fairness and transparency; reimbursement levels that take into account budget constraints for payors and are financially sustainable for providers; and ensuring that successful programs are embraced further. NCPA and its members will continue to work closely with Congress and the White House, in a bipartisan fashion, to offer common-sense solutions for the challenges we face for the remainder of this year and in the future.

"The health care reform law that was upheld by the Supreme Court includes bipartisan provisions intended to achieve reasonable reimbursement for Medicaid generic prescription drugs, although the implementation process to date has been disappointing. There are also transparency requirements for pharmacy benefit managers in the health care exchanges set to launch in 2014. Medication therapy management will be expanded in Medicare. Independent community pharmacies remain exempted from the duplicative accreditation requirement for selling Medicare Part B durable medical equipment. Mechanisms have been put in place for the inclusion of pharmacies in Accountable Care Organizations and Medical Homes. In the aftermath of the Supreme Court decision and the government's response to it, NCPA will continue to prioritize these issues because, left unaddressed in a prudent fashion, it is patients that will suffer the consequences. "    

The National Community Pharmacists Association (NCPA®) represents the interests of America's community pharmacists, including the owners of more than 23,000 independent community pharmacies. Together they represent a $93 billion health care marketplace, dispense nearly 40% of all retail prescriptions, and employ more than 315,000 people, including 62,400 pharmacists. Independent community pharmacists are readily accessible medication experts who can help lower health care spending. To learn more go to www.ncpanet.org or read NCPA's blog, The Dose, at http://ncpanet.wordpress.com.

SOURCE National Community Pharmacists Association