NCAP Legislative Update April 2021

North Carolina Association of Pharmacists Advancing Pharmacy. Improving Health.

Legislative and Policy Update April 9, 2021 At the General Assembly Before we update you on our legislation, we thought it might be useful to provide a brief overview of the legislative process.

Our Association provides legislative sponsors with a draft of the legislation we would like to see enacted. That draft is sent to “bill drafting” by the sponsor, who then “files” the bill. Once filed, the bill is assigned to a committee to be heard and discussed. A bill might be heard by one or more committees before going back to the floor of the House or Senate for further discussion and voting. If either side (i.e., the House or Senate) votes to approve the bill, it is then sent to the other side, where a similar process takes place. Once both the House and Senate have passed the legislation, it goes to the Governor for signature and becomes law.

What our members need to be aware of is that this is A PROCESS. The version of the bill that comes back from bill drafting may not be exactly what NCAP originally requested. Furthermore, members may discuss our legislation behind closed doors, and decide to make changes on their own, based on other stakeholders’ interests or concerns. It is important to remember that you might see a version of a bill on the General Assembly website that seems very different from the original draft that NCAP requested. Please do not let this alarm you.

We are engaged with our bill sponsors throughout this complex process in which many stakeholders have a voice. Our bills’ sponsors, other members of the General Assembly, various stakeholders, will all weigh in on our bills. NCAP’s goal is always to advocate what is best for pharmacists, the practice of pharmacy, and our patients. We will continually strive to achieve the best possible outcome.

The following is a status update regarding each of our bills: Pharmacy Benefits Manager Senator Perry, one of our champions has introduced Senate Bill 257 the “Medication Cost Transparency Act.” Senators Britt and Johnson join him as Primary Sponsors with Senators Corbin, Edwards, Lazzara

and Lowe signed on as co-sponsors. The bill is designed to put an end to many of the most egregious PBM practices threating pharmacy in our state.

Current status: This bill has been assigned to the Senate Health Committee, but has not yet been scheduled to be heard. We will alert members once SB257 has been scheduled.

“Improving Patient Outcomes and Access to Care” This is the new title of our “Collaborative Practice” legislation. The bill is drafted and will be introduced

by Rep. Wayne Sasser. We are seeking to introduce a companion Senate bill as well. It is likely that we will hold this bill in committee while we first focus our efforts on the PBM and Medicine Administration bills.

Current status: The bill should be filed by Rep. Sasser within the month of April. We will alert our members once the bill has been filed.

“Medicine Administration” On March 11, the Governor signed into law House Bill 196 “2021 COVID-19 Response & Relief.” Within this large piece of legislation, there is a provision that now allows NC pharmacists to administer “longacting injectable medications.”

However, another bill with broader permissive language has also been introduced by Representative Sasser. This bill is House 96 and is called: “Allow Pharmacists to Administer Injectable Drugs” This bill would be more permissive, allowing qualified pharmacists to administer all “injectable drugs”.

Current status: This bill has been filed in the House and assigned to the House Health Committee. It was recently withdrawn from the Committee schedule. We are awaiting the bill to be rescheduled. We will alert our members once a new date has been set.

“Public Health” This legislation will allow pharmacists to both prescribe and administer a specific list of medications, including smoking cessation products, hormonal contraception, HIV post-exposure prophylaxis, and others. There are currently two versions of the bill, both of which require much more work. The first bill was introduced by Senator Burgin, SB 575 “Pharmacists Improve Public Health Needs.”

A similar bill has been introduced by Rep. Sasser, HB512 “Pharmacists Improve Public Health Needs” Current Status: We have requested a meeting with both primary sponsors to recommend revisions.

HB512 has yet to be assigned to a committee. SB575 has been referred to the Senate Rules Committee.

“Pay Parity” Rep. Mitch Setzer has agreed to sponsor this bill and has sent the bill to be drafted. We will provide you with a copy of the filed bill once available.

Current status: In bill drafting

Other Legislation Other pharmacy-related bills that have introduced: House Bill 93 “Allow Naloxone Scripts with Opioid Scripts” This bill would direct doctors to prescribe naloxone in addition to prescribing opioid medications at 50 morphine milligram equivalents/day. The bill passed out of the House Insurance Committee and is headed to the House Rules Committee.

House Bill 178 “Access to Prescription Drug Cost Information” would require “access to accurate prescription drug benefit cost information at the time of sale.

Senate Bill 711 “NC Compassionate Care Act” which is a medical cannabis bill for which NCAP has requested a meeting with the primary sponsor, Senator Rabon. NCAP has had a Medical Cannabis Task Force in place for the past two years. We want to make sure that pharmacists are included in the care of patients that may require medical cannabis. We will keep our membership posted as we learn more.

Your Role It is VERY IMPORTANT for you to thank the legislators who are going to bat for pharmacy. A short phone call or note saying thank you for introducing these bills would be greatly appreciated. We can forget to let legislators know we are grateful for their work. Here is their contact information: Senator Jim Perry: Jim.perry@ncleg.net 919-722-5621 Senator Jim Burgin: jim.burgin@ncleg.gov 9197335748 Rep. Wayne Sasser: Wayne.sasser@ncleg.gov 919-733-5908

Changes Coming to Pill PAC We are working to bring PILL PAC up to speed. We have hired a firm that is designing a platform that will allow direct contributions online. Up till now, those contributing had to mail in a check. Also, the same firm will be working with us to craft a series of campaigns designed to get pharmacists across the state contributing to this important effort.

With over 12,000 pharmacists in our state, PILL PAC has the potential to be one of the best funded Political Action Committees (PACs) in North Carolina. But its up to each of us to contribute. We cannot let a small number of pharmacists do the work for us all, which has been the case up until now.

Legislators pay attention to well-funded PACs, and we are determined to make pharmacy a powerhouse in North Carolina.

Donating to “PILLPAC” is the way that pharmacists and our members can support legislators who support our issues.

In the coming weeks, you will be receiving a solicitation from the firm that is working with us to make PILL PAC a force in North Carolina politics. Please consider a monthly contribution to this effort. It will make all the difference.

NCAP Advocacy Fund You can also help by donating to the NCAP advocacy fund. What’s the difference in PILLPAC and the NCAP NCAP’s Advocacy Fund? Our advocacy cannot be used for legislators’ political campaigns.

Instead, this fund is used to support our Association’s grassroots work and to hire our lobbyist. To make a contribution to the Advocacy Fund please visit www.ncpharmacists.org and click on ‘donate’ under the ‘advocacy tab’.

As always, send your thoughts, input and suggestions to either our Executive Director, Penny Shelton, at penny@ncpharmacists.org or to our NCAP Lobbyist, Tony Solari, at solarigovernmentsolutions@gmail.com.