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Medication synchronization legislation signed into law by Governor John Kasich!

After two years of legislative work on the issue, we are pleased to report that HB 116, legislation aimed at expanding patient access to pharmacist-provided medication synchronization services, has been signed into law by Governor John Kasich!

Governor John Kasich Signs Hb 116Once the law becomes effective on January 1, 2017, HB 116, sponsored by Reps. Tim Brown (R-Bowling Green) and Tim Ginter (R-Salem), will allow patients with prescriptions for chronic diseases or conditions (including, but not limited to, heart disease, cholesterol, COPD, high blood pressure, etc.) to permissively participate in a process with their physician and pharmacist to align their medications to be refilled on the same day.  The process, referred to as "medication synchronization" or "med sync," can help improve patient adherence by having all the patient's prescriptions ready for pick up on the same date each month. In addition to minimizing disruption of treatment through delayed or missed refills, the National Community Pharmacists Association (NCPA) says that med sync boosts patient adherence rates by more than 30 percent.

Specifically, HB 116 would require commercial plans and Medicaid to offer coverage of med sync services to patients, while also providing for coverage of partial drug refills with pro-rated copays, plus full dispensing fees for pharmacies, in order to achieve synchronization and allow the pharmacist to receive the customary dispensing fee for filling a partial script.

For a complete analysis and summary of HB 116, click on the Ohio Med Sync Law Summary.

It is estimated that 21 percent of Americans use three or more medicines and 10 percent take five or more medicines. Using multiple medications increases with age, with almost 40 percent of U.S. adults aged 65 and older using five or more medicines.  Patient and caregiver lives are simplified by eliminating multiple trips to the pharmacy each month and streamlining the refill process. 

Representative Tim Ginter At Student Legislative DayIt is also estimated that at least 125,000 Americans die annually due to poor medication adherence. As adherence declines, emergency room visits increase by 17 percent and hospital stays rise 10 percent among patients with diabetes, asthma, or gastric acid disorder. Data shows that as many as half of all patients do not adhere faithfully to their prescriptions, and the result is more than $290 billion spent each year on avoidable medical treatment.

OPA feels HB 116 is a significant step in improving medication adherence, lowering health care costs, and reducing hospitalizations in Ohio.

OPA thanks the Ohio House and Senate for voting unanimously in favor of HB 116, and we thank Governor John Kasich for signing it into law! 

For additional information, please see the sponsor testimony from Reps. Ginter & Brown on the bill, which spoke of the benefits of med sync and the boosted adherence rates that studies attribute to the service. Also, OPA gathered supporters to testify in support of the bill in the House & Senate, including OPA Executive Director Ernie Boyd and OPA member and Vice President of Regulatory Compliance at Exact Care Pharmacy, Todd Donnelly. Both Ernie and Todd discussed the benefits of medication synchronization for patients, and the value of pharmacists moving to a more appointment-based model where patients receive all their medications at the same time, and the pharmacist has a better opportunity to counsel them on their therapy.

Additionally, those submitting proponent testimony in favor of HB 116 included OPA members AJ Caraballo with The Hometown Pharmacies and Steve Ferris with Discount Drug MartLarke Recchie with the Ohio Association of Area Agencies on AgingJeff Stephens with the American Cancer Society Action NetworkThomas Houston with the Ohio Academy of Family PhysiciansTim Maglione with the Ohio State Medical AssociationJimelle Rumberg with the Ohio Foot & Ankle Medical AssociationMichael Podgurski with Rite-AidMatt DiLoreto with the National Community Pharmacists Association; and Tom Menighan with the American Pharmacists Association.

Representative Tim Brown At Student Legislative Day

Special thanks to HB 116's sponsors, Representative Tim Ginter and Representative Tim Brown for championing this important pro-patient legislation, and to their legislative aides Katherine Wenner (Ginter) & Daniel James (Brown) for all their hard work. Additional thanks to Senator Dave Burke and Representative Anne Gonzales who chaired the committees that ultimately vetted and advanced the legislation; and thanks to House Speaker Cliff Rosenberger and Senate President Keith Faber for ushering the bill through their respective chambers.

We would like to thank our members who have been a crucial part of advancing this bill through the legislature and ultimately onto Governor Kasich's desk. Through your meetings, phone calls, legislative days, and letters, we were able to achieve unanimous votes, despite the pushback from opponents.

Now that Governor Kasich has signed HB 116, OPA encourages members to educate their patients on the benefits of med sync services and to prepare for the new law's rollout when it becomes effective on January 1, 2017.

For more information on HB 116, please check out these news clips on the legislation:

Kasich signs 12 bills - The office of Governor John Kasich, 5/31/16

House Bill 116 makes prescriptions easier to take - Rep. Tim Ginter in The Daily Advocate, 5/26/16

State Reps. Tim Brown, Tim Ginter – Legislation passes both chambers, on to Governor for signature - The NBXpress, 5/18/16

Brown bill would synchronize prescriptions - The Sentinel-Tribune, 5/17/16

Ohio ‘med sync’ bill on its way to governor - Bowling Green Independent News, 5/12/16

State Reps. Ginter, Brown applaud concurrence of legislation to simplify prescription process - Ohio House of Representatives Majority Caucus, 5/11/16

Proposal would increase efficiency in refilling prescription drug orders - Akron Legal News, 11/6/15

Synchronizing medication refills to one day improves adherence - Rep. Tim Brown in the Times Bulletin, 8/1/15

States take the lead in making med synchronization easier - National Community Pharmacists Association, 6/18/15

What if you could get all your prescriptions on one day? - Ernest Boyd in the Akron Beacon Journal, 6/5/15

Time to simplify Ohio’s prescription process - Rep. Tim Ginter in the Chillicothe Gazette, 5/30/15

Plan would streamline prescription refills - Youngstown Daily Legal News, 5/13/15

 

Outside of the support of volunteers and members, and the work of OPA's legislative staff in building coalitions and meeting with legislators, supporting political campaigns is a huge part of the advocacy process. We need to support good legislators who support pharmacy and the patients we serve, and we need to build on these recent success by working towards even bigger goals. Please consider financial support of our legislative efforts by contributing to the OPA Pharmacy PAC. 100% of Pharmacy PAC money contributed by pharmacists goes to help candidates who support pharmacy in Ohio. Or if you'd like to make a corporate contribution to support OPA's investment in our advocacy program, please consider being a part of the OPA Legislative Defense Fund (LDF)

 

You take care of patients. We take care of you.

 

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