An Administrative Hearing open to the public is set for Wednesday, February 8, 2012 at 4:00pm in Annapolis on the issue of whether a pharmaceutical fee schedule should be implemented for physician-dispensed medications. The Schedule will set a uniform fee for reimbursement to the dispensary, tied to the average wholesale price of a drug prescribed for an injured worker under the workers' compensation system.
Currently, there is a great disparity between the reimbursement rate for pharmacies and the rate for physicians dispensing medications for injured workers. With no regulation in place, physicians are being paid an average of $2.59 per pill dispensed from their office while pharmacies were receiving only $.067 per pill. If adopted, this regulation will have the effect of decreasing the costs of Employers and Insurers for providing medications to injured workers.
The Maryland Workers' Compensation Commission is looking for real-world information regarding the impact this practice is having on costs. HMM will be in attendance at this hearing and encourage any Employers and/or Insurers interested in supporting this measure to also attend and be heard.
For more information on what is being proposed, please see the attached Maryland Register.