The Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services will not implement an earlier regulatory proposal requiring that consultant pharmacists maintain independence from long-term care facilities or drug firms at this point, but has decided it will rely instead on voluntary efforts by LTC providers to halt overprescribing or improper prescribing in those facilities. The decision is part of a final rule addressing a range of revisions to the Medicare program, issued April 2.
The proposal, released in October 2011, was aimed at insulating LTC prescribing from financial incentives from drug firms, such as rebates Also see "CMS Targeting LTC Facility Overprescribing, Citing...