After much back and forth (that's an understatement), a House-amended version of Indiana SB 282 passed yesterday, albeit with the promise of a trailer bill (HB 1277) that will remove problematic amino acid language from the bulk drug substance definition in SB 282. What started as a drugmaker-driven proposal that would have severely restricted patient access to essential compounded medications has evolved into a bill that focuses on establishing a regulatory framework for medical spas and reinforcing compliance with existing FDA and USP standards for compounding pharmacies. The bill will now go to the governor’s desk for signature.
Kentucky HB 729 was introduced yesterday as well. The 46-page bill, while still increasing compounding regulation, is very different legislation than we have seen in other states. Backed by the Kentucky Board of Pharmacy instead of being written by drugmakers, the bill seems to be more grounded in the reality of healthcare and pharmacy practice. APC is still analyzing the bill and will be offering feedback and suggested edits as needed.
SB 26-066 has a hearing in the Senate Health & Human Services Committee next Thursday, March 5. The bill claims to target counterfeit drugs or bad actors, but in practice it would make it harder for licensed pharmacies to provide medications, specifically GLP-1s, that many patients rely on, even when a patient's prescriber has determined they need a compounded preparation to meet their individual medical needs.
Tell your Colorado patients and providers to please take 30 seconds to send a message opposing the bill to their senators before the hearing next week. The link goes to our super-easy form for doing that.