Old Line Government Affairs aided their client HDA with legislation to clean up reporting requirements outlined in a 2020 bill.
This Session, Old Line Government Affairs supported Healthcare Distribution Alliance (HDA) by helping to create HB973/SB823, cross-filed technical clean up bills that address some reporting requirements that were established by a 2020 law regarding Pharmacy Services Administrative Organizations (PSAOs).
PSAOs are entities that independent pharmacies hire to assist them with the administrative tasks of reviewing and executing contracts for the pharmacy. Pharmacies choose to use them because they handle all the back-office functions associated with analyzing, filing, and executing contracts with the giant Pharmacy Benefit Managers (PBMs) and health plans for them. The pharmacies pay a flat monthly fee to the PSAO for performing this voluntary service.
The 2020 law required PSAOs in Maryland to be licensed and for them to report all their contract forms and amendments to contract forms to the Maryland Insurance Administration prior to the contracts going into place.
That’s where the challenge arose. PSAOs do not author the contract forms and templates, making it very difficult to deliver such forms.
HB973/SB823 represents a technical fix that makes a huge difference to PSAOs and ensures a cleaner process for the licensed entities. PBMs and health plans will now be required to report the contracts. Old Line worked hand-in-hand with HDA and Senator Ben Kramer and Delegate Ariana Kelly to get this bill across the finish line, and it was successfully passed out of both legislative houses.
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