Letters, Statements & Analysis
AMCP communicates the importance of managed care pharmacy by collaborating with members to provide comments, analysis, and testimony to Congress and federal and state agencies on the impact of proposed regulations and laws on managed care pharmacy and patients.
AMCP shares concern about the rising costs of medications and the impact on patients, payers, and providers. In 2017, AMCP identified three key areas where AMCP members help to improve health outcomes and lower costs. These areas focus on enhancing value for outcomes; enhanced approaches to medication coverage determinations; and market competition for generics and biosimilars to lower costs.
AMCP expresses our strong support for H.R. 965, the Creating and Restoring Equal Access to Equivalent Samples (CREATES) Act, bipartisan legislation to increase competition and patient access to safe and affordable generic and biosimilar medicines. AMCP is pleased with the reintroduction of the legislation into the 116th Congress on February 5, 2019.
On Dec 12, 2018 The Food and Drug Administration (FDA) issued a new proposal to amend its regulation that defines “biological product” to incorporate changes made by the Biologics Price Competition Act of 2009 (BPCI Act).
AMCP expresses strong support for S. 340, the “Creating and Restoring Equal Access to Equivalent Samples (CREATES) Act,” bipartisan legislation to increase competition and patient access to safe and affordable generic and biosimilar medicines. AMCP is pleased it was reintroduced into legislation in the 116th Congress on February 5, 2019.
AMCP shares the committee’s concerns about the unsustainable burden of high drug pricing on patients and providers and has been working with stakeholders to educate Congress on ways that AMCP pharmacists, physicians, and nurses can improve health outcomes while lowering costs.
The Academy of Managed Care Pharmacy (AMCP) appreciates the opportunity to provide comments to the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) Office of Civil Rights (OCR) in response to its Request for Information on Modifying HIPAA Rules to Improve Coordinated Care [HHS-OCR-0945-AA00].
On January 31, 2019 the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) proposed sweeping changes to the current system for medication pricing and contracting by pharmacy benefit management (PBM) companies in federal programs--namely Medicare Part D and Medicaid programs.
The CREATES Act is a bipartisan, market-based solution to increase competition and thus lower prescription drug prices for patients and consumers. This reform helps speed the introduction of generic and biosimilar medicines by facilitating the purchase of brand name drug samples on market-based terms from pharmaceutical companies who otherwise would use anticompetitive tactics to block access.
On January 30, 2019, the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) published an Advanced Notice of Methodological Changes for Calendar Year (CY) 2020 for Medicare Advantage (MA) Capitation Rates, Part C and Part D Payment Policies and 2020 Draft Call Letter, known as the “ draft Call Letter.” The draft Call Letter outlines payment amounts for beneficiary cost sharing, risk corridors for Part C and Part D plans, and beneficiary payments for calendar year 2020.
The Academy of Managed Care Pharmacy (AMCP) appreciates the opportunity to provide comments to the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) and the Office of the National Coordinator for Health Information Technology (ONC) in response to the draft Strategy on Reducing Burden Relating to the Use of Health IT and EHRs.
