HB 287

Abstract

This Act implements recommendations of the Interagency Pharmaceuticals Purchasing Study Group created by House Concurrent Resolution No. 35. First, this Act creates the Interagency Pharmaceutical Purchasing Collaborative (“Collaborative”) to leverage the total volume of State pharmaceutical purchases to negotiate lower prices. The Collaborative must conduct a data analysis of current pharmaceutical purchasing prices paid by State agencies to create a data analytic profile. After building the data analytic profile, the Collaborative must build a market database by assessing the value, as determined by cost and patient outcome, of individual drugs and calculating the volume of individual drug purchases by all State agencies. The Collaborative must use the market database to identify opportunities to leverage the total volume of State pharmaceutical purchases to negotiate lower prices which may include a group purchasing agreement or a consortium with other states. Second, this Act requires that State agency contracts to purchase pharmaceuticals must contain specific transparency provisions. These transparency provisions will allow the State to monitor and control the cost of pharmaceutical purchases. Finally, this Act clearly provides that information received or generated by the Collaborative or under contract transparency provisions is not public information under the Freedom of Information Act. However, the Collaborative must provide an annual report that summarizes the Collaborative's work. House Substitute No. 1 for House Bill No. 287 differs from House Bill No. 287 as follows: 1. In § 6317A(e)(2)a. of Title 29, requires the Interagency Pharmaceutical Purchasing Collaborative to assess the value of individual drugs using evidence-based cost and patient outcomes instead of by the simple cost and patient outcomes. 2. Changes “pharmacy benefit manager” to “wholesaler” in § 6937(a)(1) of Title 29, because the acquisition cost is negotiated between a wholesaler and manufacturer not between a pharmacy benefit manager and manufacturer. 3. Requires the Secretary of the Department of Health and Social Services to provide and purchase the data analytics required under § 6317A(e)(1) of Title 29 by March 31, 2021.