Pharmacies fume over Cuomo bill veto
BY GABE HERMAN
Governor Andrew Cuomo
on Dec. 26 vetoed a bill
that independent pharmacists
said would protect them
and patients against health care
middlemen causing higher fees.
The bill would have required
Pharmacy Benefit Managers
(PBMs) to be regulated and
licensed. Advocates for the bill
have said PBMs effect the health
care system from every angle, and
can charge insurers a higher rate
for claims and then reimburse
pharmacies at lower levels, in a
method called “spread pricing.”
The method cost New York State
about $300 million last year in
its Medicaid managed care program,
according to Pharmacists
Village Apothecary, an independent pharmacy in the West Village.
Society of the State of New York
(PSSNY).
Cuomo wrote in his veto message that
he has made regulation of the pharmaceutical
sector a priority, including recently
announcing a three part plan to lower
prescription drug costs by capping insulin
co-pays, empowering the State Dept. of
Financial Services to hold drug makers
accountable for excessive drug price
Pier 76 in Hudson park plan after Pier 40 got vetoed
BY MARK HALLUM
A municipal tow yard at Manhattan’s
Pier 76 should be added
to the Hudson River Park Trust
in 2020, clearing the way for further
parkland and recreational development,
Governor Andrew Cuomo said
Sunday.
Hoping a transformation of the compound
used by NYPD will complement
other attractions in the area such as Javits
Center and the High Line, Cuomo is calling
on the trust to maximize the “green
space, recreation, community access and
market potential” of the 250,000 square
foot tow pound.
As a proposal in his 2020 State of the
State agenda, the space would be fully
integrated into the park which the governor’s
office referred to as a “long deferred
transfer” promised 20 years ago.
“There is only a precious limited
amount of green space left for community
use, and we have to make sure
we are protecting and preserving it on
Pier 40 and Pier 76 and are carefully
increases, and establishing a commission
to study the feasibility and benefits of a
program to import drugs from Canada.
“I have also proposed registering and
regulating PBMs, and continue to support
such measures,” Cuomo wrote.
However, Cuomo added that although
he appreciates the bill’s intent, among
his objections were that it was “likely to
increase administrative costs, facilitate
balancing the park’s financial needs
with protection of green space,” Cuomo
said. “The redevelopment of this valuable
land will maximize underutilized
green space and recreational and market
potential with the possibility of connecting
regional landmarks like Javits and
the High Line.”
Pier 76 will be vacated at the end of
the year, the governor’s office said, claiming
that the state would assist the city in
finding an alternative location for the tow
pound.
The pier was originally within the
scope of the Hudson River Park Act,
passed by the legislature and signed by
former Governor George Pataki in 1998.
But the transfer of this land has been
stalled; it’s now one of the last gaps in
accessible waterfront on the West Side
of Manhattan, according to Cuomo’s
administration.
The Hudson River Park Trust will
now need to form a park-wide financial
and use strategy and has until May 1 to
request any legislative approval for certain
actions it hopes to take, according
(GOOGLE MAPS)
anti-competitive conduct, and generate
scrutiny from the Federal Trade Commission
(FTC) and the Department of
Justice (DOJ) and sweep in plans that are
not true PBMs, but rather health benefit
funds only.”
Cuomo also wrote that this bill would
be preempted by the Federal Employee
Retirement Income Security Act (ERISA)
and the Medicare Prescription Drug,
to Cuomo.
The trust was not able to be reached
for comment when amNewYork Metro
reached out.
Cuomo vetoed on Dec. 31 a bill to
authorize development of commercial
offices at Pier 40, at West Houston
Street along Hudson River Park. In his
veto message, Cuomo wrote that “Pier
40 is a valuable asset to the surrounding
community offering recreational space in
an area of the city that is more and more
congested…”
Cuomo noted the bill’s intention of
providing more money for the park, and
wrote, “Money is always the rationale to
develop sites in Manhattan, hence the
lack of open space, green areas, parks or
recreation space.”
Cuomo added in his veto message,
“The State and City fund the Hudson
River Park and will fund it again this
year… In the next session I will work
on legislation that will ensure that the
Park will finally have access to Pier 76,
which will ensure Pier 40 reaches its full
potential.”
Improvement, and Modernization
Act (“MMA”) as applied
to the Medicare Part D
Program.
“For these reasons,” Cuomo
concluded, “I am constrained
to veto this bill.”
Supporters of the bill
were very disappointed with
Cuomo’s decision.
“By vetoing a bill that
would have provided vulnerable
patients, taxpayers, and
community pharmacies with
desperately needed protections
from abusive prescription
drug middlemen known
as pharmacy benefit managers
(PBMs),” said John Kaliabakos,
Director of Pharmacy Services
at Village Apothecary, an independent
pharmacy in the West
Village, “Governor Cuomo
has failed to resolve what has become a
national healthcare crisis.”
In a joint statement, Steve Moore,
president of PSSNY, and Michael Duteau,
president of the Community Pharmacy
Association of New York State, thanked
supporters in the state Senate and Assembly,
each of which passed the legislation
this past June.
A Hudson River Park Trust spokesperson
said about the veto, “The importance
of Pier 40 for Hudson River Park’s overall
financial health and as a recreational
resource cannot be overstated. We appreciate
that the Governor is looking for
a comprehensive solution for Pier 40 and
the entire park.”
Connie Fishman, Executive Director
of the nonprofit Hudson River Park
Friends, said in a statement about the
veto, “Identifying a long-term Pier 40
solution is critically important for Hudson
River Park and its millions of users.
Friends has built a broad coalition of
support over the past year through our
Pier 40 For All campaign. We had hoped
this would provide a starting point for
Pier 40’s redevelopment, and we are
optimistic about working with our State
and local officials in 2020 to identify a
solution that ensures that Pier 40 can remain
a beloved community resource and
one of the Park’s key financial anchors for
years to come. We’ll continue to advocate
strongly for the economic health of the
entire park.”
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