[Congressional Record Volume 153, Number 116 (Thursday, July 19, 2007)]
[Senate]
[Page S9619]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]

      By Mr. COCHRAN (for himself, Mr. Pryor and Mr. Enzi):
  S. 1827. A bill to amend title XVIII of the Social Security Act to 
require prompt payment to pharmacies under part D, to restrict pharmacy 
co-branding on prescription drug cards issued under such part, and to 
provide guidelines for Medication Therapy Management Services programs 
offered by prescription drug plans and MA-PD plans under such part; to 
the Committee on Finance.
  Mr. COCHRAN. Mr. President, implementation of the Medicare 
prescription drug plan has helped provide prescription drug coverage 
for millions of Medicare beneficiaries who previously did not have 
access to medications. Many seniors are now paying less for 
prescription drugs and the savings for the prescription drug program 
are even greater than expected. The Centers for Medicare and Medicaid 
Services, CMS, and health care providers worked together to plan and 
implement this program and from the beginning, pharmacists played a 
significant role in making this benefit successful. Pharmacists 
assisted their Medicare patients in the selection and enrollment 
process and filled prescriptions for patients, regardless of the 
guarantee of timely reimbursement. Pharmacists continue to be diligent 
in serving their patients and providing much-needed medications, 
despite financial difficulties they have encountered in providing these 
services.
  We are introducing a bill today to assist pharmacists as they 
continue to serve their patients and as they help to continue the 
success of the Medicare drug benefit. This bill will allow pharmacists 
to achieve efficiencies in reimbursement for the products they provide 
to Medicare beneficiaries. This is especially important to the small, 
rural independent pharmacies in my State. This legislation will also 
provide incentives for pharmacists and other providers to help 
beneficiaries better use their medications, adhere to their drug 
regimens, and utilize cost saving medication therapy management 
programs.
  I am pleased to offer this legislation that will help continue the 
success of the Medicare prescription drug benefit.
  Mr. PRYOR. Mr. President, earlier today I joined with Senators 
Cochran and Enzi to introduce the Pharmacist Access and Recognition in 
Medicare Act of 2007. This is bipartisan legislation that will help 
ensure patients have access to local pharmacies.
  I am concerned that the Medicare Modernization Act that was enacted 
in 2003 failed to sufficiently ensure Medicare patients would have 
quality access to prescription medicines available at local pharmacies.
  The new drug program took effect at the beginning of 2006. We now 
know that during that year over 1,100 community pharmacies across the 
country closed their doors according to the National Community 
Pharmacists Association.
  It is critical to me that patients living in small towns throughout 
Arkansas and across America have access to community pharmacies.
  While I believe major reforms need to be made in the Medicare 
prescription drug benefit, I believe that the bipartisan bill I 
introduced with Senator Cochran and Enzi today is an achievable first 
step in making the Medicare drug benefit work better for patients and 
pharmacists who are local front line health care providers.
  This bill will ensure that pharmacies are paid on a timely basis for 
prescriptions that are filled for Medicare beneficiaries. It can take a 
month for pharmacies to be paid now, and this bill will ensure that 
pharmacies get paid electronically for clean claims within 10 business 
days.
  Seniors should have a choice concerning what pharmacy they use. Our 
bill codifies regulations ensuring that Medicare drug cards are not 
cobranded with the name of a pharmacy, leaving beneficiaries under the 
impression that the card may only be good at a single, large chain 
pharmacy.
  Cards could be cobranded in the first year of the program. 
Regulations prohibit that happening this year, but our bill ensures 
this will not be a problem in the future.
  The bill will also help ensure that medicines are used appropriately. 
Pharmacists are the best trained providers in our health care system to 
ensure prescribed medications are used correctly. The bill creates a 2 
year community-based medication therapy management demonstration 
program using pharmacists to provide services.
                                 ______