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NCPA, IPA File Brief in Federal Appeals Court in PBMs' Case
- By: IPA
- On: 02/04/2016 23:41:49
- In: Press Releases
NCPA, IPA file brief in federal appeals court in PBMs' case against Iowa's drug pricing transparency law.
The National Community Pharmacists Association (NCPA) and the Iowa Pharmacy Association (IPA) have filed an amicus curiae brief in the United States Court of Appeals for the Eighth Circuit in support of the state of Iowa and against a challenge by the Pharmaceutical Care Management Association (PCMA) to the state's MAC transparency law. PCMA is appealing a decision of the United States District Court for the Southern District of Iowa that dismissed PCMA's remaining claims, which sought to block implementation of H.F. 2297, a bill creating more transparency as to how pharmacy benefit manager (PBM) corporations administer reimbursements for multi-source generic prescription drugs in Iowa. NCPA CEO B. Douglas Hoey, RPh, MBA, issued the following statement:
“Multiple courts have dismissed PCMA's legal arguments that would preserve the status quo for PBM corporations' unfair business practices. The Iowa legislature unanimously approved H.F. 2297 because it recognized the importance of providing transparency to the system for generic prescription drug reimbursement. PCMA has been throwing specious arguments against the wall in the hopes that something sticks and allows PBM corporations to continue to unfairly operate their businesses at the expense of everyone else.
“The amicus curiae brief submitted by NCPA and IPA supports the lower court's decision and puts forth compelling legal reasons why Iowa's law is not preempted by ERISA or is unconstitutional under the so-called dormant Commerce Clause of the Constitution as PCMA has alleged. We hope the Eighth Circuit rejects PCMA's desperate attempt to invalidate the legality of the drug price transparency law. That outcome would help patients and Iowa's pharmacies, which are given virtually no information about the criteria PBM corporations use to determine reimbursements--while also being forced to absorb financial losses because PBM corporations fail to update their price lists in a timely fashion, even when price spikes occur.”
