March 2021

SB257 “Medication Cost Transparency” was introduced in the Senate by Senators Perry, Britt and Johnson on March 11, 2021.  The bill was referred to the Senate Committee on Rules on March 15, 2021.

 

Fall 2020

NCAP has been in discussions with key members of the General Assembly designed to reintroduce another version of the PBM bill.  We have stressed our desire to move this legislation quickly and avoid the problems we had last session.  Initial feedback from members is very positive.  We plan on introducing the bill early and moving it through the legislative process as quickly as possible.

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June 2020

NCAP tries to get the bill moving out of the conference committee where it had been held up since October. There were several changes to the list of House and Senate conferees. Late in the 2020 session there is some success moving the bill out of committee and to the floor of both chambers.  Unfortunately, our important legislation ended up being held hostage to  But our legislation is held hostage to  inter-chamber politics at the last minute and the session adjourned without passage of the legislation.

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August 2019

Another Senate bill, Senate 432 was amended to include the PBM provisions in House 534 and Senate 632. Added to the PBM provisions was a section dealing with the licensure of Birth Centers. Senate 432 had already been passed by the Senate and sent to the House where the PBM and Birth Center provisions were added. The bill passed the House and was sent back to the Senate for concurrence. The Senate failed to concur with the House changes and the bill was sent to a conference committee in October of 2019.

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April 2019

Despite the passage of House 466, PBM’s continued to engage in practices proscribed by the legislation. There was no real enforcement provided for in the bill. As a result, the NCAP sought the introduction of legislation that would serve to enforce existing law. Two bills were introduced, House 534 and Senate 632. These bills were sent to insurance committees in the House and Senate but did not proceed further in the legislative process.

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June 2018

House 466 is passed by the General Assembly and signed into the law late in July of 2017 the bill allowed pharmacists to discuss lower cost drug alternatives with patients and enacted prohibitions against many of the practices that PBM’s have used to negatively impact pharmacists in caring for their patients. You can find this important piece of legislation at: https://www.ncleg.gov/Sessions/2017/Bills/House/PDF/H466v4.pdf

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May 2017

The two bills each pass out of their respective chambers and go to the other chamber for consideration. NCAP members lobby to have the measures passed.

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April 2017

NCAP works with Senators Canny Britt and Bill Rabon to introduce Senate 384 “The Pharmacy Patient Fair Practices Act.” Representative Jones introduces House 466, a “companion bill.” These bills would address the regulation of PBM’s doing business in North Carolina and provide protections from unfair business practices.​​​​

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