North Carolina Association of Pharmacists 2021, Issue 1 of 12 ncpharmacists.org
E-News ENews
Advancing Pharmacy. Improving Health.
General News Enrollment Portal for COVID-19 Vaccine Providers NC DHHS has established the COVID-19 Vaccine Management System (CVMS). Pharmacists/Pharmacies interested in receiving and administering COVID-19 vaccine, must apply through the CVMS Provider Enrollment Portal. Any provider enrolling through the portal will be reviewed and considered for approval by the NC Immunization Branch to administer the COVID-19 vaccine. Enrollment can be initiated here. COVID-19 vaccine providers must be credentialed/licensed in North Carolina. Completing the enrollment process does not mean that once approved you will have immediate access to vaccine. NC DHHS is following a plan that currently has hospitals in Tier 1, physician practices in Tier 3, and community pharmacies in Tier 4. Access to vaccine for community pharmacies is currently estimated to occur no earlier than February or March time frame. However, pharmacists can complete their enrollment and the training of
their staff to prepare for rollout once the supply of vaccine is more plentiful and it begins being distributed to community pharmacies. Please visit the North Carolina Immunization Branch COVID-19 training website for Provider Enrollment Portal training content. NC COVID-19 Status and First Case of Variant Strain As of early this week, 99 of 100 North Carolina counties’ COVID alert status is either red (86) or orange (13). Some important COVID-19 statistics for our state: 13.3% Test Positivity Rate; number currently hospitalized is 3,368; to date 8,776 deaths, and 630,734 people have received the first dose of the vaccine. On January 23, the NC Department of Health and Human Services reported the first case of the COVID-19 variant (B.1.1.7), which was first detected in the United Kingdom in December. In the United States, there have been 195 cases, of this variant strain, reported in 21 states. The case in North Carolina was in an adult from Mecklenburg County. Early data suggest this variant may be more contagious, but still susceptible to the approved
COVID-19 vaccines. The arrival of the variant at the same time that we are experiencing very high COVID-19 case numbers, emphasizes vigilance in adhering to social distancing, washing your hands and wearing a mask. Also, North Carolina’s Modified Stay at Home order is still in effect, until further notice. What Clinicians Should Know About the Second Dose of COVID-19 Vaccine The recommended dosing intervals for the 2-dose mRNA COVID-19 vaccines are 21 days for Pfizer-BioNTech’s vaccine and 28 days for Moderna’s. Some vaccination clinics are scheduling dose #2 appointments up to 4 days early (i.e., at 17 days) for Pfizer-BioNTech’s vaccine, and as early as 24 days for Moderna’s. COVID-19 vaccines are not recommended to be administered at shortened intervals. The CDC immunization guidelines allow for a “4-day grace period.” This means that if a vaccine dose is inadvertently administered earlier than the recommended time, then, according to CDC, that dose can still be counted as valid. However, the 4-day grace period is not recommended to be used
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as an option when scheduling dose #2 of a vaccine. People who schedule appointments and digital scheduling systems should only offer dose #2 scheduling options beginning 21 days (Pfizer-BioNTech) or 28 days (Moderna) after dose #1. National Community Pharmacists Association Files Lawsuit Against US DHHS Earlier this month the National Community Pharmacy Association filed a federal lawsuit against U.S. Department of Health and Human Services regulations that enable pharmacy direct and indirect remuneration (DIR) fees that are driving small local pharmacies out of business. Pharmacy DIR fees have increased 1600% since 2015. Our profession’s administrative approach came close to succeeding in 2019, when HHS approved such a rule, only to have it blocked, and ultimately extinguished because of opposition from the White House. Having exhausted every effort to work through the legislative and regulatory processes, NCPA made the decision that pharmacists and patients cannot wait any longer. The lawsuit alleges that the fees are without reasonable transparency, and they conceal from patients and taxpayers the true cost of prescription medications. The case, NCPA v. Azar, argues that a rule allowing price concessions to be imposed on pharmacies long after the point of sale violates the language and intent of the Medicare Act.
Compounding Pharmacists Encouraged to Participate in Survey Pharmacists who compound biohormone therapies (cBHT) are encouraged to complete this national survey. Several external coalitions are conducting outreach to pharmacists and prescribers to collect data and patient experiences regarding the benefits of cBHT. The data will be shared with members of Congress and the FDA. NC DHHS Updates COVID-19 Vaccine Resources The following are links to updated patient education and infographics regarding the COVID-19 vaccines. As pharmacies and pharmacists continue to prepare to assume their role in immunizing our citizens, you may find some of these materials useful in communicating with patients. • Vaccine FAQs (English, Spanish) • Vaccine Presentation including new Infographic (English, Spanish)
• Deeper Dive Group 1 and Group 2 • 65 years+ flyer (English, Spanish)
seem like it’s under control. This is not the case and there is much that NCAP is still doing to raise awareness as to how pharmacists can help and trainings that we offer to assist pharmacists with harm reduction, opioid stewardship and medications for opioid use disorder services in their pharmacies and practices. NC DETECT has published a full report on our opioid overdose statistics. Opioid overdoses, in NC, climbed in 2020 as compared to 2019 by 23%. Evidence that there is still plenty of work to be done for patients and families in this space. Public Health Service Recruitment This is a great opportunity for mission-driven public health focused health professionals who want to be part of our nation’s emergency response capabilities by augmenting our capacity to strategically address public health needs across the nation. Ready Reserve | Commissioned Corps of the U.S. Public Health Service (usphs.gov) The Ready Reserve Corps will provide trained and ready personnel to fill critical public health needs and will:
• Vaccine Flyer (Bilingual)
• Support the USPHS Commissioned Corps’ capacity to respond to regional, national, and global health emergencies and improve access to health services
We’ve spent so much time focused on COVID-19 in 2020, that the Opioid epidemic may
• Preserve clinical care positions by maintaining a surge capacity of health professionals available
Latest on the Opioid Epidemic
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for deployment without jeopardizing the service of clinicians in hard to fill roles
NCAP to host APhA Pharmacy-Based Immunization Certificate Training
toward July 1 transition to managed care. The forum will also provide an opportunity for Q/A.
• Offer an opportunity to serve for mission-driven clinical and public health professionals who cannot commit to a full-time active-duty position in the USPHS Commissioned Corps
In response to a growing need to mobilize pharmacists in assisting with COVID 19 vaccinations, NCAP is pleased to announce it will be providing VIRTUAL offerings of APhA’s Pharmacy-Based Immunization Delivery Certificate Training on February 19th and March 19th, 2021 from 9 am-5 pm EST.
NCAP Offers Executive Fellowship in Association Management
• Enable access to highly specialized skill sets that would be impractical in full-time activeduty positions. NC Medicaid Managed Care Provider Directory and Look Up Tool The public version of the Medicaid and NC Health Choice Provider and Health Plan Lookup Tool is now available at: https:// ncmedicaidplans.gov/. Providers are encouraged to use this tool to confirm the availability and accuracy of information contained in their NCTracks provider enrollment record. The provider directory contains all active Medicaid and NC Health Choice providers, including primary care providers, specialists, hospitals and organizations. The authenticated portal will be available to beneficiaries beginning March 1, 2021. For more information, please visit NC Provider Directory – Medicaid and NC Health Choice Provider and Health Plan Look Up Tool Now Available.
Practice Advancement News
APhA’s training is based on national education standards for immunization training from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. The virtual trainings provides 20 hours of ACPE approved programming combining both self-study and hands-on experience in vaccine administration necessary to meet the US DHHS “Prep” act authorizing pharmacists to order and administer vaccines (see G.S. § 90-85.15B, “Immunizing pharmacists”). Registration for the February 19th and March 19th events is open to all pharmacists. For more information and registration details click here.
Announcements Save The Date April 8th Time TBD for an NCAP-hosted forum with NC Medicaid and the MCO Pharmacy Directors. This is an opportunity to hear updates from Medicaid and the MCOs as we continue to move
NCAP is pleased to announce we will be starting a post-graduate Executive Fellowship to begin July 2021. Pharmacists looking for change, residents and fourth-year student pharmacists interested in a nontraditional career path in pharmacy, are encouraged to apply. Click here for more information. Application deadline is February 28th. NC Immunization Coalition Offers Webinar on Vaccine Hesitancy in a Time of COVID-19. The speaker will be Heidi Larson, PhD, who was highlighted in the New York Times. Date: February 2 Time: 12:00-1:00PM The program is accredited for CME. NCAP will accept proof of attendance to issue NC-CE for any pharmacists who wish to attend. To register click here: Vaccine Hesitancy in a Time of COVID-19 ASCP Geriatric Pharmacist Boot Camp NCAP as an affiliate of the American Society of Consultant Pharmacists, we are able to offer their Geriatric Boot Camp
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virtual workshop on geriatric principles from March 9-11, 2021. Based on the Board of Pharmacy Specialties (BPS) Content Outline, this course helps participants either prepare for the 2021 Board Certified Geriatric Pharmacist (BCGP) exam or to refresh their knowledge of geriatric pharmacotherapy. This boot camp works through practice skills and clinical case topics with other pharmacists and our subject matter experts. NCAP members can attend ASCP’s Geriatric Pharmacist Boot Camp at the ASCP member rate! Please use our state code BC21STATEMEM when you register. Visit ascp.com/ bootcamp to learn more and register. Award Nominations It’s that time again. Time to nominate someone you know for one of the many awesome awards we present during our annual convention. Each and every one of you knows someone who has been knocking it out of the park. When it comes to doing their job, no one does it better. They inspire, encourage and go above and beyond expectations. This year our award recipients will be recognized during the NCAP 2021 Virtual Convention, June 6 – 9. Click here to find the perfect award to nominate that pharmacy hero you have in mind. Submit your nominations by March 19, 2021. NCAP Annual Meeting to Hold its 6th Annual Poster Session!
The NCAP 2021 Annual Convention will be presented in a virtual format June 6 – 9 and will host its 6th annual poster session. Presenting a poster at NCAP is an excellent opportunity to share your research with pharmacy practitioners all around the state! Submissions by practitioners, students, and residents are welcome! Details regarding the poster session will be forwarded to authors when they are notified their work has been selected Categories: • Original Research: Clinical or educational research appealing to an audience of pharmacy professionals in North Carolina. May include health services, pharmacotherapy, medication safety, or patient outcomes. Abstract Headings: Objective, methods, results, conclusions • Quality Improvement Evaluations: Assessments of quality improvement measures such as medication use evaluations or process improvements. May include ideas and practices new to system, or practice setting. Abstract Headings: Objective, methods, results, conclusions • Case Report or Series: Description of a unique patient case or series. May include novel indication, dose or administration of a medication. Abstract Headings: Introduction, case (s), discussion Word Count: 300 words (excluding author names and title)
Abstracts describing ongoing research will be considered with partially completed data. Descriptions of planned research without any data will not be accepted. Abstracts will be evaluated based on readability and organization, relevance, and potential impact to pharmacy practice. Please submit your name, your credentials, and your abstract to Angie Broughton angie@ ncpharmacists.org. Deadline: April 12, 2021. Status of submissions will be communicated to authors by April 30, 2021. Selected abstracts published in the North Carolina Pharmacist: The Official Journal of the North Carolina Association of Pharmacists. Edits to abstracts cannot be made after submission. NOTE: Poster presenters MUST register for the Convention for the day of presentations. There will be no discounted registration, honorarium or speaker fee. Click here for an example of a structured abstract:
Partner News This month we give a shout out to our longtime partner Pharmacy Audit Assistance Service (PAAS). We are pleased to make available to you a PAAS-generated resource on COVID-19 Vaccine Billing Guidance.
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FDA News The following are excerpts compiled from daily FDA news, regarding new drug approvals, posted during the month of January 2021. Bamlanivimab Eli Lilly’s monoclonal antibody, bamlanivimab (LY-CoV555) significantly lessened the risk of contracting COVID-19 among nursing home residents and staff, according to findings from a phase III trial. Researchers found that there was an 80% reduction in the frequency of symptomatic COVID-19 among those who received the monoclonal antibody when compared to placebo. Vericiguat The FDA has approved Verquvo (vericiguat), a drug jointly developed by Bayer and Merck, for the treatment of symptomatic chronic heart failure. The drug was approved for reducing the risk of cardiovascular death and heart-failure hospitalization following a hospitalization for heart failure or the need for outpatient intravenous diuretics n adults with symptomatic chronic heart failure with an ejection fraction of less than 45 percent. Generic Human Glucagon The FDA approved Amphastar Pharmaceutical generic synthetic human glucagon,
which comes in a 1mg injection emergency kit. This is the first generic version of glucagon for injection, approved for treating severe hypoglycemia, to be approved by the FDA.
Academy Forum & Committee News New Practitioner Leadership Buzz There is still time for NCAP members in the first few years of practice to join our Leadership Buzz book discussions. We have a few scholarships still available to support the cost of books. Four of the six scheduled discussions are still to come. Click here for more information. If you are interested in participating reach out to Angie Broughton at angie@ncpharmacists.org. This will be the last opportunity to join the group.
Practice Academies To All Focus On Stronger Connections & Membership During the January 2021 Board of Directors meeting, each of our practice academy chairs described a focus for the year on forging connections among pharmacists across the state for the purpose of building a stronger membership within each academy. The academies’ leadership teams are also beginning the process of working with the Annual Convention Planning Committee to plan the programming for each academy within the convention framework. The 2021 chairpersons are Irene Ulrich (Ambulatory Care), Janine Bailey (Chronic Care), Anna Armstrong (Community Care) and Angela Livingood (Health Systems).
Event News
Student Pharmacist Forum Our student pharmacist forum is working on a couple of new resources including an Advocacy Certification program for students. In addition, the SPF leadership has started working on plans for how NCAP can coordinate a student conference in the Fall of 2021. The SPF is also interested in helping to lead and host an NCAP-sponsored podcast on pharmacy issues impacting our state. If you are student member of NCAP and have an interest in helping with any of these initiatives, please contact Anita Yang, SPF Chairperson, anita23@email.unc. edu.
Welcome 2021! Although 2020 was a tough year, we did what was necessary to keep moving forward. We put our thinking caps on and found new ways to meet those yearly continuing education requirements. That’s the good thing about all of the technological advances over the past several years, they allowed us to meet virtually. As we begin our journey into 2021, with the hope we will be meeting in person again before it is over, we will do what is safe and continue to meet virtually. Your NCAP staff has been working very hard to
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create engaging continuing education opportunities for you in the form of live webinars, certification programs and once again an all-virtual convention. We are working on getting details and registration up and running for several of the planned events, but keep checking our website, www.ncpharmacists.org, to access the information. See below the dates for upcoming events.
February 19 NCAP-APhA Virtual Immunization Certification Program February 21 COVID-19 Vaccine Plan: Current Status, Challenges, Successes & Next Steps
March 19 NCAP-APhA Virtual Immunization Certification Program March 21 NCAP 2021 Advocacy Agenda: What Every Pharmacy Professional Should Know April 18 Resiliency in Challenging and Turbulent Times May 2 A Care Transition Model
June 6 – 9 NCAP’s 2021 Virtual Convention July 18 Diabetes Care Initiative
August 15 Pharmacy Law Topic
September 19 New Drug Updates Part I
October 17 New Drug Updates Part II
Technician News
Online PTCB prep courses for pharmacy techs. It is a new year. Hopefully, it will be a much better year for all. Edupharmtech.com wants to wish everybody the hope and prosperity that they deserve in the upcoming months. Covid shots are coming out and techs may be called upon to assist in the immunization process so it is imperative to have good aseptic techniques along with an understanding of the principles behind the inoculations. For every immunization given there will be many others that have questions and concerns about it. Talk with your pharmacist and get the most updated information to be able to pass the data on to others. That said, certified techs may be called upon to step up against coronavirus and what better way to do that is to go through the review courses at Edupharmtech.com. You can receive 8 hours of PTCB accepted continuing education
toward registration. If you are not certified but wish to be, this is a great way to study for the PTCB exam. It includes 8 hours of webinar style class complete with practice tests and narrated pages. Many people have difficulty reading and comprehending whereas, hearing the explanation about topics helps to solidify the information. Edupharmtech.com does just that. Drugs are explained logically. Math problems are described, then solved. Pharmacy law and hospital terms are clarified and pharmacy practice brings it all together. Take a few moments to explore the website and open up the world of Pharmacy Certification through PTCB. Click here for more information and use the discount code NCAP for 10% Off.
Opening doors for Independent Pharmacists. Mutual Drug has been assisting pharmacists in declaring their independence for 65 years.
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Publication Corrections Contact Rhonda at rhonda@ncpharmacists.org
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