Pharmacy Competition And Consumer Choice Act Of 2011
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The Pharmacy Competition and Consumer Choice Act of 2011 (''H.R. 1971'') is the
legislation Legislation is the process or result of enrolled bill, enrolling, enactment of a bill, enacting, or promulgation, promulgating laws by a legislature, parliament, or analogous Government, governing body. Before an item of legislation becomes law i ...
that was introduced in the
112th United States Congress The 112th United States Congress was a meeting of the legislative branch of the United States federal government, from January 3, 2011, until January 3, 2013. It convened in Washington, D.C. on January 3, 2011, and ended on January 3, 2013, 17 ...
on May 24, 2011, with the full title of the bill stating to "amend the Public Health Service Act to ensure transparency and proper operation of pharmacy benefit managers". The chief sponsor of the legislation was Republican
Cathy McMorris Rodgers Cathy Anne McMorris Rodgers (born May 22, 1969) is an American politician who is the U.S. representative for , which encompasses the eastern third of the state and includes Spokane, the state's second-largest city. A Republican, McMorris Rodgers ...
(R-WA5), while other notable co-sponsors include Democrat
Anthony Weiner Anthony David Weiner (; born September 4, 1964) is an American former politician who served as the U.S. representative for from 1999 until his resignation in 2011. A member of the Democratic Party, he consistently carried the district with at l ...
(D-NY9), Republican Austin Scott (R-GA8), Democrat
Jesse Jackson, Jr. Jesse Louis Jackson Jr. (born March 11, 1965) is an American politician. He served as the U.S. representative from from 1995 until his resignation in 2012. A member of the Democratic Party, he is the son of activist and former presidential can ...
(D-IL2) and Republican
Tom Marino Thomas Anthony Marino (born August 13, 1952) is an American politician and attorney, who served as a United States Representative from Pennsylvania from 2011 to 2019. He represented the from January 3, 2011 to January 3, 2019, and the from Janu ...
(R-PA10).


Support

Support for the bill came from the National Community Pharmacists Association (NCPA). In a press release dated on May 24, 2011, NCPA writes that the bill would protect patients' ability to go to the pharmacy of their choice, eliminate needless pharmaceutical spending and allow legitimate anti-fraud oversight, while avoiding abusive pharmacy audits.


Opposition

Opposition to the bill came from the Pharmaceutical Care Management Association (PCMA), with arguing that in efforts to carve drugstores out of the national fight against health care fraud, independent drugstores are demanding new laws to limit the use of
audit An audit is an "independent examination of financial information of any entity, whether profit oriented or not, irrespective of its size or legal form when such an examination is conducted with a view to express an opinion thereon.” Auditing ...
s and other tools used to detect pharmacy fraud. They state that with 93% of community pharmacy revenue being derived from prescriptions versus the front-end, those pharmacists also share a greater sensitivity to any changes in prescription drug reimbursement, and consequently any changes in federal or state programs would disproportionately affect these small-business owners.


Controversy

On April 24, 2012,
Americans for Tax Reform Americans for Tax Reform (ATR) is a politically conservative U.S. advocacy group whose stated goal is "a system in which taxes are simpler, flatter, more visible, and lower than they are today." According to ATR, "The government's power to control ...
and the Cost of Government Center sent a letter to the legislation's chief sponsor, Cathy McMorris Rodgers, arguing that H.R. 1971 takes the wrong approach to
pharmaceutical industry The pharmaceutical industry discovers, develops, produces, and markets drugs or pharmaceutical drugs for use as medications to be administered to patients (or self-administered), with the aim to cure them, vaccinate them, or alleviate symptoms. ...
oversight reform while preventing pharmaceutical benefit managers from investigating and stopping
prescription drug A prescription drug (also prescription medication or prescription medicine) is a pharmaceutical drug that legally requires a medical prescription to be dispensed. In contrast, over-the-counter drugs can be obtained without a prescription. The rea ...
fraud as well as medicare fraud, waste and abuse. However, McMorris Rodgers responded that the bill would increase competition and promote transparency, and it would make the delivery of
pharmacy Pharmacy is the science and practice of discovering, producing, preparing, dispensing, reviewing and monitoring medications, aiming to ensure the safe, effective, and affordable use of medicines. It is a miscellaneous science as it links heal ...
services much more efficient.


See also

*
Acts of the 112th United States Congress The acts of the 112th United States Congress includes all Act of Congress, Acts of Congress and Treaty, ratified treaties by the 112th United States Congress, which lasts from January 3, 2011 to January 3, 2013. Acts include Public law, public an ...
* Preserving Our Hometown Independent Pharmacies Act of 2011 *
Food and Drug Administration The United States Food and Drug Administration (FDA or US FDA) is a List of United States federal agencies, federal agency of the United States Department of Health and Human Services, Department of Health and Human Services. The FDA is respon ...


References

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External links


Full text of the Act
Proposed legislation of the 112th United States Congress Consumer protection legislation Consumer protection in the United States