Content about Medicare

ALEXANDRIA, Va. The National Community Pharmacists Association is urging the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services to follow guidance that Congress included in the healthcare-reform law in its implementation of a new Medicaid generic drug reimbursement formula based on average manufacturer price, the organization said Tuesday.

CMS recently withdrew provisions that would have dramatically cut Medicaid pharmacy reimbursement to community pharmacies from a previously proposed AMP rule due to an injunction that the NCPA obtained in 2007.

BENTONVILLE, Ark. Shortly after Walmart and Humana announced that they would offer a Medicare Part D prescription drug program to customers, signage in Walmart stores popped up.

BENTONVILLE , Ark. (Oct. 1) Walmart and Humana on Friday unveiled a new Medicare Part D prescription drug offering designed to help both companies gain market share and save money for those enrolled in the program.

WHAT IT MEANS AND WHY IT'S IMPORTANT Launching a pre-emptive campaign to capture a major share of the Medicare prescription market, Walmart and Humana have unveiled a boldly conceived, co-branded Medicare Part D prescription drug plan that offers steeply discounted premiums and co-payments.

(THE NEWS: Walmart, Humana unveil new Medicare Part D prescription drug offering. For the full story, click here)

WASHINGTON Generic drugs saved Medicare Part D beneficiaries and the program as a whole $33 billion in 2007, according to a new report by the nonpartisan Congressional Budget Office. The CBO expected another $14 billion in annual savings to accrue as many new generics enter the market through 2012.

The main lobby for pharmacy benefit managers said the report also showed the advantages of pharmacy benefit managers.

WASHINGTON The recently installed head of the federal Medicare program is pushing hard to promote new and more cost-effective ways to treat patients and improve the nation’s health scorecard.

ALEXANDRIA, Va. National Association of Chain Drug Stores president and CEO Steve Anderson and National Community Pharmacists Association acting EVP and CEO Douglas Hoey issued a statement praising the proposed rule by the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services that would withdraw existing provisions of the Medicaid pharmacy reimbursement formula under the average manufacturer price model.

ALEXANDRIA, Va. Reps. Mike Rogers, R-Mich.; Zack Space, D-Ohio; Lee Terry, R-Neb.; and Peter Welch, D-Vt., have sent a letter to the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services recommending CMS keep prices for its national competitive bidding program for Medicare Part B mail-order diabetes testing supplies separate from similar supplies offered by retail pharmacies, the National Community Pharmacists Association announced Thursday.