OSPA advocates on behalf of pharmacy with the legislature, state agencies, and other stakeholders across the State of Oregon. OSPA also works in collaboration with national professional pharmacy organizations and other entities to advocate for pharmacy nationally.
The 2022 Oregon Legislative Session was a fast 32 days and bill outcomes changed at the speed of light. Many of the concepts we championed were passed into law, and the one bill we fought did not. Here is a summary of our wins this session:
CAT Tax exemption for prescription drugs for independent pharmacies: We have been concerned that pharmacies who suffer under the weight of a tax that has been passed along from manufacturers and wholesalers may not be able to stay open. While early in the session, we were told that no CAT Tax exemptions would be made, we pushed for an exemption for prescription drugs and were able to negotiate a four year exemption for pharmacy chains with less than 9 pharmacies and all independent pharmacies. While this is not a permanent exemption it allows us plenty of time to examine the dual impacts of this tax to the state coffers and patient care alike.
In response to the Oregon Board of Pharmacy’s last round of rulemaking, we were able to pass a provision for a Technician Checking Verification Program (also known as tech check tech). This bill directs the Board of Pharmacy to promulgate specific, but limited rules so that technicians can work at the top of their license.
Other bills we championed helped pass provisions so that pharmacies can comply with pseudoephedrine transfer laws, allowing interns to transfer pseudoephedrine to patients, and setting a deadline for the Pharmacy Benefit Manager (PBM) law to be enforced for all PBM contracts.
Finally, a bill was proposed by the Chair of the House Health Care Committee to mandate that pharmacists offer to co-dispense naloxone to a patient with a morphine equivalent dose of 90 per day or if they had filled a benzodiazepine or a gabapentinoid in the past 12 months. By our calculations, that would have impacted almost half a million Oregonians per year. The bill also mandated counseling about drug addiction in addition to naloxone. Although the goal is a good one, pharmacists in Oregon can already prescribe (and be reimbursed for prescribing) opioid antagonists. We know that the prohibitive cost of the drug, the lack of mandate for insurance companies to cover the drug are the real obstacles to saving lives. As the Chair noted during the public hearing on the bill, other providers had objected to this intrusion on clinical judgement in the past – as we did this go round. Through our legislative efforts, this bill did not pass despite robust support amongst community members.
Overall, while the session was fast and furious, it was also a very productive session for the pharmacy profession. We are looking forward to the 2023 session where we will be taking a comprehensive look at PBM regulation once again.
This was a very successful legislative session for OSPA, OSHP, and our joint legislative committee! We encourage you to join our monthly Pharmacy Coalition meetings to stay up to date on legislative affairs. Email info@oregonpharmacy.org to be added to the listserv. Additionally, ensure your membership is kept current and recommend your colleagues join OSPA if they aren’t already members so that OSPA continues to have the funds to support our legislative efforts!
PBMs; SB 1529 PASSED
TCVP; HB 4034 PASSED
Co-prescribe Naloxone; HB 4081 DEFEATED
Pseudoephedrine; HB 4034 PASSED
CAT Exemption; SB 1524 PASSED
Tele-pharmacy & Telework Clarification: HB 4034 PASSED
Market Conduct Requirements for PBM’s Effective 1/1/21
House Bill 2185 and Associated Rules for Regulation of Pharmacy Benefits Managers
Oregon Legislative News and Updates
Stay up to date on current legislative events impacting the Oregon Pharmacy community. Featured below are commentary and news updates focusing on current actions within the Oregon legislative system.
- 2022 Final Legislative ReportMay 5, 2022
- OSPA 2021 Legislative ReportJul 16, 2021
- OSPA 2019 Final Legislative ReportSep 3, 2020
- OSPA 2018 Final Legislative ReportSep 3, 2020
- OSPA Applauds Governor Brown and Legislators for Passage of PBM Regulation BillJul 16, 2019
- The 2018 Mid-Election PoliticsJun 6, 2018
- 2018 Primaries and Possible Special SessionApr 23, 2018
- Session may be short but has lots of sparkFeb 23, 2018
- It Ain’t All Gumdrops & RainbowsOct 16, 2017
- OSPA 2017 Final Legislative ReportSep 7, 2017
- OSPA 2016 Final Legislative ReportApr 4, 2016
- Pharmacist Prescribing of Birth Control in Oregon Off To A Great Start!Dec 1, 2015
- OSPA 2015 Final Legislative ReportAug 12, 2015
Annual Legislative Reports
If you have questions regarding this content please contact the OSPA office or our Government Affairs Advocates, Bill Cross at bill@wvcross.com or Niki Terzieff at niki@leadingedgepublicaffairs.com for further assistance.
OSPA 2021 Final Legislative Report
OSPA 2019 Final Legislative Report
OSPA 2018 Final Legislative Report
OSPA 2017 Final Legislative Report
OSPA 2016 Final Legislative Report
OSPA 2015 Final Legislative Report