ALEXANDRIA, Va.  — The National Community Pharmacists Association sent a letter from CEO B. Douglas Hoey to Chiquita Brooks-LaSure, the new administrator of the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services, congratulating her on her appointment and highlighting independent pharmacy’s critical contributions to the fight against COVID-19, NCPA’s priority issues, and areas for collaboration moving forward.

Among other things, NCPA is recommending that CMS immediately eliminate retroactive pharmacy direct and indirect remuneration fees, which the agency recently reported have increased by 91,500 percent between 2010 and 2019; retain pharmacist patient care authorities and flexibilities provided during the COVID-19 public health emergency; require detailed Medicare Part D reporting requirements on pharmacy performance measures; and develop Part D plan guidance for medical at home services provided by long-term care pharmacies. NCPA met with Brooks-LaSure and members of the administration’s health care transition team in December 2020 to discuss these and other issues.

“With the ongoing coronavirus pandemic and preexisting pressures on the industry, this is a critical time for independent community pharmacies and long-term care pharmacies,” Hoey says. “NCPA is eager to build on our relationship with the administrator and other members of President Biden’s health care team as we work to address these challenges and ensure continued patient access to the quality care neighborhood pharmacists provide.”