Dear Ms. McClellan:

On behalf more than 1,233 pharmacies operating in the Commonwealth of Virginia, the Virginia Association of Chain Drug Stores (VACDS) and the National Association of Chain Drug Stores (NACDS) appreciate the opportunity to submit comments in support of the Department of Medical Assistance Services’ (DMAS) Notice of Intent to Amend the Virginia State Plan for Medical Assistance (SPA) related to immunization reimbursement. Specifically, the SPA would authorize the DMAS to provide Medicaid reimbursement for pharmacy-administered immunizations.

Providing for Medicaid reimbursement for pharmacy-administered immunizations creates a pathway for continued access to these important services for Medicaid beneficiaries.  As the COVID-19 pandemic has demonstrated, pharmacies improve access to vaccination delivery. Even before COVID, nearly 1 in 3 adult influenza vaccines – around 38 million – were provided in pharmacies, illustrating that patients trust and rely on the convenience of pharmacies. In fact, in the three years preceding the pandemic, pharmacies provided more than 4 million vaccines to Virginia’s patients.  As research has shown, community pharmacies provide a convenient option for at-risk families juggling shift work, transportation challenges, and school schedules in which more than 30% of patients receive vaccines outside of traditional office physician office hours. Providing for Medicaid reimbursement for pharmacists-administered immunizations would not only ensure fair and accurate reimbursement for these services, but it would also ensure patient access and help expand the community-level benefit of protecting the population as a whole through the uptake of immunization services.

NACDS and VACDS applaud DMAS for proposing this SPA amendment. Incentivizing Medicaid patients’ access to vaccinations at their local pharmacy will lead to increases in vaccination rates among the population, resulting in improved patient health and overall healthcare savings. Again, we appreciate the opportunity to comment on this and are available to answer any questions or provide further information.

Sincerely,

Jill McCormack and Jodi Roth

Jill McCormack | Regional Director, State Government Affairs
717.592.8977 (cell)

JMcCormack@nacds.org | http://www.nacds.org