Governor Hochul Signs Landmark Legislation Bringing Transparency and a Comprehensive Regulatory Structure to Otherwise Unregulated Pharmacy Benefit Managers

Legislation S.3762/A.1396 Will Require Licensure and Registration of Pharmacy Benefit Managers

Legislation Will Bring Transparency to Pharmaceutical Costs and Allow Consumers to Make More Well-Informed Choices About Their Healthcare 

 Governor Kathy Hochul has announced the signing of legislation S.3762/A.1396 which provides for licensure and registration of pharmacy benefit managers. The bill also sets forth duties and obligations that PBMs must follow when performing services and allows the department of financial services to enforce the law and receive complaints from consumers, pharmacies, and healthcare providers. 

“In the midst of a global public health crisis, it’s crucial that we take every opportunity to improve the health care system and reduce costs for New Yorkers,” Governor Hochul said. “This landmark law creates the most comprehensive regulatory framework in the country for Pharmacy Benefit Managers, increasing transparency for consumers and shedding light on the cost of prescription drugs. Navigating costs associated with medications and insurance can be difficult, so I am proud to sign this legislation to make it that much easier.” 

Legislation S.3762/A.1396 requires licensure for pharmacy benefit managers and specifies their duties and obligations as service providers. This bill also allows the department of financial services to receive complaints when a PBM violates the law and will ensure PBMs abide by standards established by law and regulation. 

Acting Superintendent of Financial Services Adrienne A. Harris said, “The Department of Financial Services stands ready to implement this historic legislation which has been a long-standing priority of the Department. The regulation of Pharmacy Benefit Managers represents the next important step in tackling the impacts of high prescription drug prices on consumers and health insurance premiums. We are proud that Governor Hochul has secured the most comprehensive PBM regulatory regime in the country and are confident we will finally bring needed reforms to this previously unregulated industry.”

Senator Neil Breslin said, "The PBM industry has gone unregulated for long enough. PBMs, both here in New York and across the country have taken advantage of the lack of transparency at the expense of patients' well-being. This patient centered legislation will hold PBMs to a standard of excellence that is required by all other stakeholders in our health care delivery system. Thank you to Governor Hochul for signing this critically important piece of legislation."

Assemblymember Richard Gottfried said, “PBMs are widely recognized as major players in driving up drug costs. They’ve been a black box operating in secret without effective regulation, and PBM mistreatment of independent pharmacists is getting worse as health plans merge with chain pharmacies. This new law will provide effective oversight and transparency in this sector of the health care system. I thank Governor Hochul, Senate sponsor Neil Breslin, Assembly Speaker Carl Heastie, and my Assembly colleagues Kevin Cahill and John McDonald for their hard working turning this bill into law."

EDITOR'S NOTE:

We have to ask these two elected officials, Governor Hochul, and the rest of the state legislature this one question. What took so long?

Jackpot Climbs to $522M for Monday Night's Powerball Drawing

Three $50,000 Winning Powerball Tickets Sold for New Year's Day Drawing

 The New York Lottery today announced that three third prize tickets worth $50,000 for the January 1, 2022 Powerball® drawing were purchased in New York. The winning tickets each have four matching numbers and the Powerball.  

There were no winning tickets sold for the $518.7 million Powerball jackpot, which is estimated to be $525 million for Monday night’s drawing

The three prize-winning tickets were purchased at the following locations:

• Popular Card and Gift on Union Boulevard in West Islip
• Royal Mini Mart on Hampton Street in Sag Harbor 
• Smokes 4 Less on Main Street in Fishkill

The winning numbers for the Powerball drawing on January 1 were: 27-29-45-55-58 and the Powerball is 2. Players can securely check their tickets on the New York Lottery app.

The winning numbers for the Powerball game are drawn from a field of one to 69. The Powerball number is drawn from a separate field one to of 26. The Powerball drawing is televised every Monday, Wednesday and Saturday at 11 p.m.

About the New York Lottery

The New York Lottery continues to be North America's largest and most profitable Lottery, contributing $3.59 billion in fiscal year 2020-21 to help support education in New York State.

New Yorkers struggling with a gambling addiction, or who know someone who is, can find help by calling the State's toll-free, confidential HOPEline at 1-877-8-HOPENY (1-877-846-7369) or by texting HOPENY (467369). Standard text rates may apply

 

Cleveland Postal Service Manager Sentenced to Prison for Stealing Packages Containing Drugs

 

 U.S. Attorney Bridget M. Brennan announced that Anthony Sharp, 31, of Euclid, Ohio, was sentenced on Wednesday, December 29, 2021, by Judge Donald C. Nugent to 10 years in prison after Sharp admitted to stealing packages from the U.S. Mail that he suspected contained drugs.

Sharp pleaded guilty in August of 2021 to conspiracy to distribute controlled substances, possession with the intent to distribute controlled substances, money laundering and theft of mail.

According to court documents, the U.S. Postal Service Office of Inspector General (USPS OIG) began an investigation into Sharp, a Cleveland Postal Service Manager, based on suspicion that Sharp was profiling U.S. Mail suspected to contain cocaine, fentanyl and methamphetamine and stealing the packages.

In July of 2021, USPS OIG special agents and postal inspectors observed Sharp arrive at a Cleveland Postal Service processing facility to help sort Express Mail.  Sharp was then observed removing three packages from the mail stream and placing them in a hamper to be transported to his facility.  Once the Express Mail was sorted, Sharp was observed loading all the Express Mail for his facility, including the three packages suspected of containing drugs, into his vehicle.

Sharp was then observed leaving the facility, opening several parcels and arriving at the postal facility that he managed.  Later, Sharp left the facility and was detained during a traffic stop.  A search of his vehicle produced the three packages which were opened and contained methamphetamine, cocaine and fentanyl.  Law enforcement officers also observed additional Express and Priority Mail parcels opened in the trunk of the vehicle. 

This case was investigated by the U.S. Postal Service Office of Inspector General and U.S. Postal Inspection Service.  

A Letter to New Yorkers from New York City Comptroller Brad Lander - January 1, 2022

At this moment of transition for New York City, our communities are facing both anxious uncertainty and expansive opportunity.

We are emerging from a historic pandemic that brought our city to a standstill and took the lives of too many of our neighbors – disproportionately in communities of color. As we start the new year with a new administration, we are still facing down a public health crisis, and we must learn the lessons of this one to ensure we are better prepared for the next ones.

The NYC Comptroller is the city’s budget watchdog, pension fiduciary, and chief accountability officer. The mission is to secure a thriving future for all New Yorkers. The office has the tools and the responsibility to ensure we are budgeting wisely, investing strategically, holding city agencies to their promises, and keeping a sharp eye on the challenges to come.

And there are a lot of challenges.

The city’s glaring gender and racial inequities, highlighted and exacerbated by the pandemic, threaten the long-term prosperity of New York City’s families, neighborhoods, and economy. The climate crisis looms as the biggest long-term risk, not just to NYC’s infrastructure, but also to our investment portfolios and to the very lives of our people.

Some believe there is a conflict between effective government and progressive government. I believe they are mutually essential.

We need big, bold government that can care for people when they need it, educate our children to be leaders in diverse communities, and maintain the infrastructure that holds our lives in common together. But for that to be possible, we must build confidence – confidence which has been badly eroded – in our government’s ability to tell the truth, to plan ahead for emergencies, to deliver services effectively, to spend our public funds wisely, and account for where they’ve gone. To bring us together to solve shared problems and build a common future.

The Comptroller is NYC’s accountant. We often think about accounting as values-free – do the numbers add up, do credits and debits balance?

But the truth is: it’s all about what we value.

If we value our neighborhoods, then we must invest in good transit, truly affordable housing, and resilient infrastructure so that they can remain places where people can afford to live.

If we value a fair economy, then we must ensure that people whose work keeps our city and our economy going get the stability, pay, and dignity they need to care for themselves and their families.

If we value a sustainable future, then we must take action now – through our investments, our infrastructure, our buildings, our transportation – to transition to a green economy.

Our task together over the next four years is to ensure that we are accounting for our shared values. That we are delivering on the promises that NYC government has made to its people for a more just and equitable city.

The numbers must add up to a city where everyone has a chance to thrive.

That is the work ahead of us: to secure a fairer and more sustainable future for all our neighborhoods.

A future where every child can learn and succeed, regardless of their race or class. Where workers are treated with respect, earn fair pay, and can retire with dignity. Where economic opportunity and prosperity is accessible and shared, no matter what neighborhood you live in. Where our sewers, transit, and utilities are ready to withstand the storms to come. Where everyone who calls this city home has a home to live in.

Where our city’s government is our common vehicle for that shared thriving.

I look forward to working hard, every day, side-by-side with you, to deliver on those promises.

Sincerely,

Brad Lander

Governor Hochul Updates New Yorkers on State's Progress Combating COVID-19 - JANUARY 1, 2022

89,675 Vaccine Doses Administered Over Last 24 Hours     

88 COVID-19 Deaths Statewide Yesterday   

 Governor Kathy Hochul today updated New Yorkers on the state's progress combating COVID-19.

“As we fight the winter surge, we need to keep the most vulnerable among us in mind – do what you can to keep others in your community safe from COVID-19,” Governor Hochul said. “Wear a mask, wash your hands, and take advantage of the best tool we have at our disposal – the vaccine. If you haven’t gotten your second dose, do so as soon as possible and get your booster if you’re eligible. We will continue to make vaccines, boosters and testing more widely available as part of our Winter Surge Plan so we can continue to keep each other safe.” 

Today's data is summarized briefly below:   

• Test Results Reported – 384,365 
• Total Positive – 85,476
• Percent Positive – 22.24%
• 7-Day Average Percent Positive – 19.79% 
• Patient Hospitalization – 8,451 (+532)
• Patients Newly Admitted – 1,808
• Patients in ICU – 1,112 (+40)
• Patients in ICU with Intubation – 554 (+29)
• Total Discharges – 232,184 (1,334)
• New deaths reported by healthcare facilities through HERDS – 88
• Total deaths reported by healthcare facilities through HERDS – 48,496

The Health Electronic Response Data System is a NYS DOH data source that collects confirmed daily death data as reported by hospitals, nursing homes and adult care facilities only.   

• Total deaths reported to and compiled by the CDC – 61,242

This daily COVID-19 provisional death certificate data reported by NYS DOH and NYC to the CDC includes those who died in any location, including hospitals, nursing homes, adult care facilities, at home, in hospice and other settings.   

• Total vaccine doses administered – 33,741,158
• Total vaccine doses administered over past 24 hours – 89,675
• Total vaccine doses administered over past 7 days – 664,655
• Percent of New Yorkers ages 18 and older with at least one vaccine dose – 89.2%
• Percent of New Yorkers ages 18 and older with completed vaccine series – 80.6%
• Percent of New Yorkers ages 18 and older with at least one vaccine dose (CDC) – 95.0%
• Percent of New Yorkers ages 18 and older with completed vaccine series (CDC) – 82.9%
• Percent of all New Yorkers with at least one vaccine dose – 78.1%
• Percent of all New Yorkers with completed vaccine series – 69.8% 
• Percent of all New Yorkers with at least one vaccine dose (CDC) – 84.0%
• Percent of all New Yorkers with completed vaccine series (CDC) – 71.8%

That's It, I'm No Longer Your Mayor

 

As of 12:30 AM I was no longer your mayor. Hey Ruben you were out of a job at 12:01 AM. Let's smile for this photo by my favorite Bronx Reporter who would not stop giving me such hard questions, I told my moderator not to call on him. Are you really going to work for a developer like he said, but I liked that photo of you picking up trash in the park.

At least he can't pick on me anymore now that I am no longer mayor, and he is going to have to do it now to the new Mayor Eric Adams. At least the Bronx will have a better borough president in Vanessa Gibson, and she can't do any worse than you, because you set the bar so low, but then again you took over for someone who wound up working for a developer. They could have waited in announcing that 17 story building in Pelham Bay until you were out of office. Good luck Amigo.

Ice Skating in the Square at Owen Dolan Park

 

Thursday December 30th from 3 - 6 PM Owen Dolan Park in Westchester Square was transformed into an Ice Skating area provided by Magical Entertainment. Fitted hard plastic squares were set up in a rectangular rink, and ice skates were provided free to those who wanted to skate. There were also training aids for the very young children who did not know how to ice skate.

Experienced skaters did have some problems on this hard plastic surface, and they explained that real ice gives a little when an experienced skater tries to push off, whereas the hard plastic did not give at all. In fact many of the skates had to be ground down after being used, because the hard plastic took away the shark edge used on real ice to skate. Those who had the best time seemed to be the young people who knew how to skate, but only did it once in a while. Some said that since they did not skate often it was easy to get use to the hard plastic surface. 

Precast hard plastic squares were set up as in a rectangle shape, with skates that were given to use for free on the wall, and seats to change into the skates before entering the rink. 

Training skating aids were available to those who did not know how to skate. 

Older children such as these boys who knew how to skate, were able to skate on the hard plastic squares set up as a rink.

At times people would fall down, and in order to go skating waivers had to be signed by the person or the parent of a child. 

Because it was a hard plastic surface not real ice, some of the blades of the skates had to be ground down after being used.

Lights were used to allow for skating after the sun went down until 6 PM.

Governor Hochul Updates New Yorkers on State's Progress Combating COVID-19 - DECEMBER 31, 2021

 

137,298 Vaccine Doses Administered Over Last 24 Hours      

80 COVID-19 Deaths Statewide Yesterday

 Governor Kathy Hochul today updated New Yorkers on the state's progress combating COVID-19. 

“On this New Years Eve I wish everyone a safe and healthy celebration," Governor Hochul said. “It was a difficult year for so many New Yorkers, lets do the right thing and get vaccinated, and let's welcome the new year with lots of good health and happiness. If we work together and get vaccinated, we can make 2022 the year we beat the pandemic.”

Today's data is summarized briefly below:  

• Test Results Reported - 339,853
• Total Positive - 76,555
• Percent Positive - 22.53%
• 7-Day Average Percent Positive - 17.91%
• Patient Hospitalization - 7,919 (+546) 
• Patients Newly Admitted - 1,718 
• Patients in ICU - 1,072 (+52) 
• Patients in ICU with Intubation - 525 (+7) 
• Total Discharges - 230,850 (+1,194) 
• New deaths reported by healthcare facilities through HERDS - 80 
• Total deaths reported by healthcare facilities through HERDS - 48,405
  
  
  The Health Electronic Response Data System is a NYS DOH data source that collects confirmed daily death data as reported by hospitals, nursing homes and adult care facilities only.  

• Total deaths reported to and compiled by the CDC - 61,242
  
  
  This daily COVID-19 provisional death certificate data reported by NYS DOH and NYC to the CDC includes those who died in any location, including hospitals, nursing homes, adult care facilities, at home, in hospice and other settings.  

• Total vaccine doses administered - 33,651,483
• Total vaccine doses administered over past 24 hours -137,298
• Total vaccine doses administered over past 7 days -671,674 
• Percent of New Yorkers ages 18 and older with at least one vaccine dose - 89.2%   
• Percent of New Yorkers ages 18 and older with completed vaccine series - 80.6%  
• Percent of New Yorkers ages 18 and older with at least one vaccine dose (CDC) - 95.0% 
• Percent of New Yorkers ages 18 and older with completed vaccine series (CDC) - 82.8% 
• Percent of all New Yorkers with at least one vaccine dose - 78.0% 
• Percent of all New Yorkers with completed vaccine series - 69.7%  
• Percent of all New Yorkers with at least one vaccine dose (CDC) - 84.0%  
• Percent of all New Yorkers with completed vaccine series (CDC) - 71.8%