North Carolina Association of Pharmacists 2021, Issue 8 of 12 ncpharmacists.org
E-News
Advancing Pharmacy. Improving Health.
General News Ever-Developing Guidance on COVID-19 Booster On Friday September 24th, the CDC announced that it is endorsing the ACIP recommendation for a booster shot of the Pfizer-BioNTech COVID-19 vaccine in some populations and recommended a booster dose for those in highrisk occupational and institutional settings. See CDC’s interim guidance, which applies only to those who received Pfizer-BioNTech COVID-19 vaccine in their primary series. Early last week, the FDA amended the EUA for the Pfizer-BioNTech COVID-19 vaccine to allow for single booster dose use. The CDC will address recommendations for Moderna and Johnson & Johnson vaccines as soon as data are available. Billing Codes for COVID-19 Boosters NCPA has updated their vaccine billing handout with information needed to bill for COVID-19 boosters. The most recent NCPDP guidance (current version here; section 10), recommends that claims for COVID-19 boost-
ers use Submission Clarification Code (SCC) 10. Some PBMs may temporarily require SCC 07 and SCC 10 to be submitted together which allows them to process claims immediately and avoid having to reject claims in this fluid situation. ASHP Seeks Comments on Robotic Tech for Compounding ASHP is soliciting comments on the Draft ASHP Guidelines on the Selection, Implementation, and Utilization of Workflow and Robotic Technologies for Preparing Intravenous Compounded Sterile Preparations. Individuals and organizations may submit comments on the draft until October 29, 2021. U.S. District Court Judge Rules on FDA Compounding MOU On September 21st, Judge Cooper with U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia ruled, in the case Wellness Pharmacy, Inc. et.al. v. Becerra et.al., that the FDA violated procedure in producing the standard Memorandum of Understanding, which establishes an agreement between individual state pharmacy boards and the FDA. Judge Cooper, found that the Regulatory Flexibility Act was applicable, and that the FDA must “either certify that it will not have a significant eco-
NCAP E-News
Isssue 8-12
nomic effect on small businesses or prepare a regulatory flexibility analysis. Growing Number of U.S. Adults Unable to Afford Medications Gallup recently shared results of a June 2021 survey, which found an estimated 18 million adults in the U.S. were unable to pay for at least one prescribed medication, for their household, during the prior three months. Among those households earning less than $24,000 per year, the percentage of those unable to afford their medication nearly doubled to 19%, as compared to earlier this year. Findings also included: adults under age 65 years were twice as likely as seniors to be unable to pay for medications; and 1 in 10 adults skip doses to save money. Coalition for PBM Reform Launched The Coalition for PBM Reform was announced on September 23rd. The Coalition is supported by six national organizations, representing patient advocates, physicians, pharmacists, pharmacies and others. Their mission is to collectively bring transparency to how pharmacy benefit managers (PBM) operate. They plan to use the voices of patients, healthcare providers, employers and payers
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