gag Archives - Medical Association of the State of Alabama

President Signs Bills Lifting Pharmacist ‘Gag Clauses’ on Drug Prices

Posted by admin on October 18, 2018

Earlier this week, President Trump signed two bipartisan bills into law that will allow pharmacists to tell patients they can save money on drugs by paying cash or trying a lower-cost alternative. At issue was the “broken” drug pricing system in the U.S. that was forcing patients to make decisions, which could have negatively impacted their health.

The bills, the Patient Right to Know Act and the Know the Lowest Price Act, prohibit health insurers and pharmacy benefit managers from using “gag clauses” that prevent pharmacists from sharing with patients the lower-cost options when they are purchasing medically necessary medication. In addition, the legislation ensures the Federal Trade Commission will have the necessary authorities to combat anti-competitive pay-for-delay settlement agreements between manufacturers of biological reference products and follow-on biologicals. The Patient Right to Know Act would apply similar “gag clause” protections to Medicare and MA plans.

Under the new legislation, pharmacists will be allowed, though not required, to tell patients about lower-cost options. If pharmacists don’t tell, then patients will have to ask about the cost of the medication. However, some pharmaceutical industry experts say although eliminating the gag clause is a step toward consumer transparency, it doesn’t address the issue of lowering actual drug costs, making it unclear how much of a tangible effect the legislation will have.

According to research published in JAMA in March, people with Medicare Part D drug insurance overpaid for prescriptions by $135 million in 2013. Copayments in those plans were higher than the cash price for nearly 1 in 4 drugs purchased in 2013. For 12 of the 20 most commonly prescribed drugs, patients overpaid by more than 33 percent.

Yet some critics say eliminating gag orders doesn’t address the causes of high drug prices. “As a country, we’re spending about $450 billion on prescription drugs annually,” said Steven Knievel, who works on drug price issues for Public Citizen, a consumer advocacy group. The modest savings gained by paying the cash price “is far short of what needs to happen to actually deliver the relief people need.”

Florida’s Physician “Gun Gag” Overturned on Appeal

Posted by admin on February 17, 2017

The full panel of the U.S. Court of Appeals for the 11th Circuit struck down the Florida law restricting physicians from speaking to patients and families about the risks of guns in the home. The case, Wollschlaeger v. Scott, was filed on June 6, 2011, challenged the Florida law, which could censor, fine and revoke the licenses of physicians if the Florida Board of Medicine determined whether the physician violated the law.

The American Medical Association along with several other major medical societies opposed the gun-gag law arguing it infringed on the First Amendment right of physicians to discuss gun safety, especially when patients have children who may happen across a loaded, unsecured firearm in the home. The law banned asking gun ownership questions except when deemed clinically necessary and forbade physicians from recording whether a patient owned a weapon in the medical chart claiming that the question was discriminating and harassing of gun owners.

“There was no evidence whatsoever before the Florida legislature that any doctors or medical professionals have taken away patients’ firearms or otherwise infringed on patients’ Second Amendment rights,” the court said, noting that lawmakers based their measure on six anecdotes about medical gun questions in a state with more than 18 million residents. “There is no actual conflict between the First Amendment rights of doctors and medical professionals and the Second Amendment rights of patients that justifies FOPA’s…restrictions on speech.”

Read the U.S. Court of Appeals for the 11th Circuit’s full decision here.

The continuation of the law would have prohibited a simple conversation in the physician’s office that can save lives. Research has shown that when physicians offer guidance on gun locks and safe storage, appropriate to a child’s specific age and development, it is more likely that families will take those necessary steps.

“Pediatricians routinely counsel families about safety issues, including firearm safety, as part of anticipatory guidance, in order to reduce risk of injury to children,” said Cathy Wood, M.D., FAAP, president of the Alabama Chapter of the American Academy of Pediatrics. “Florida’s ‘gun’ law was an assault on physicians’ right to counsel their patients. We are thankful for this court decision and the hard work of the pediatricians and other physicians in Florida that worked to protect this right, not just in Florida but hopefully for all states.”

Tags: advocacy, appeal, florida, gag, gun, law

Posted in: Advocacy