Trump Signs Bills to Eliminate Pharmacy ‘Gag’ Clauses
President Donald Trump on Wednesday signed into law two bills that mean all pharmacists are now allowed to inform patients of whether they can purchase medicines for less money.The so-called “gag clauses” previously restricted pharmacists from informing patients of what the new law calls “any differential between the negotiated price of, or copayment or coinsurance for, the drug or biological to the enrollee under the plan and a lower price the individual would pay for the drug or biological if the enrollee obtained the drug without using any health insurance coverage.”
The Patient Right to Know Drug Prices Act is for commercial employer-based and individual policies, while the Know the Lowest Price Act is for Medicare and Medicare Advantage beneficiaries.
In addition, the Patient Right to Know Drug Prices Act also requires manufacturers to report to the Federal Trade Commission pay-for-delay agreements that could slow biosimilars from entering the market.
The Pharmaceutical Care Management Association (PCMA), which represents pharmacy benefit managers, said it “strongly supports” both laws.