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Medicare Audits Show Problems in Private Plans
By ROBERT PEAR, New York Times
Published: October 7, 2007
Tens of thousands of Medicare recipients have been victims of deceptive sales tactics and had claims improperly denied by private insurers that run the system's huge new drug benefit program and offer other private insurance options encouraged by the Bush administration, a review of scores of federal audits has found.
Entire article may be found on the New York Times site.
Depression is Real Campaign
Please help the APA and it allies promote this campaign with your local print and broadcast media. Check out this website and send a letter today.
Related file: Depression Is Real: PSA Follow-up Script
Psychiatrists Offer Strategies For Getting Care to Rural Areas
Click here for the complete Psychiatric News article.
NAMI Walks Results
Congratulations to all NAMI Maine walk teams 2006! Click here for a listing of the top 15 teams!!
American Psychiatric Association Assembly
Assembly Report
Toronto Convention Center, May 19- May 21, 2006
MAPP representatives present:
Joseph Rubin, M.D., Assembly Speaker
Richard Fortier, M.D., Area 1 Deputy Rep
Bogan Brooks, M.D., Maine Rep to Area 1
Robert Croswell, M.D., Maine Deputy Rep to Area
Maine's
Unused Pharmaceutical Return Program Gaining Momentum as National
Model
In the
United States, there has not been a safe way for patients
to dispose of unused prescription medication; and the accumulation
of unused prescription medication has been dangerous. Some
people have died from accidental poisoning, while others have
died by purposeful ingestion. Drug abusers have diverted unused
controlled substances for illicit purposes. Americans have
flushed unused pharmaceuticals down the toilet and polluted
our environment.
In response
to this public health and safety problem, the Maine Association
of Psychiatric Physicians in collaboration with the Maine
Medical Association and other interested parties supported
a bill that was passed in 2003 by the 121st Maine Legislature
entitled: "An Act to Encourage the Proper Disposal of
Unused Pharmaceuticals." This bill allows Mainers to
safely dispose of their unused prescription medication by
mailing unused pharmaceuticals in a prepaid envelope to the
Maine Drug Enforcement Agency for destruction. The Maine Drug
Return Implementation Group, which was charged with the task
of making recommendations to the Legislature for the implementation
of the Unused Pharmaceutical Return Program, gave its report
to the Legislature in January 2005.
As options
for funding the prescription drug return program in Maine
are currently being explored, several groups across the country
have expressed an interest in Maine's innovative program.
List-serves regarding this serious public health problem have
been set up and Maine's Unused Pharmaceutical Return Program
appears to be gaining momentum as a national model. At its
convention in March of 2005, the United States Pharmacopeia
passed a resolution to work with appropriate constituencies
to develop programs to promote safe medication use and disposal.
In May of 2005, the Assembly of the American Psychiatric Association
endorsed an action paper that encourages state legislatures
and the federal government to adopt programs for the proper
disposal of unused pharmaceuticals.
At a time
when Maine is trying to find a way to save $56 million in
pharmaceutical costs for the coming biennium, Maine's Unused
Pharmaceutical Return Program represents a potential savings
to Maine's Medicaid program. Here is how it works. Since every
returned prescription medication represents a wasted health
care expenditure, a careful analysis of which medications
are not taken by patients may provide important clues about
ways to eliminate wasted health care dollars. It is this potential
in Medicaid savings for cash strapped legislatures across
the country that makes Maine's Unused Pharmaceutical Return
Program such an attractive model for improving public health
and safety.
W. Bogan
Brooks, M.D.
Damariscotta, Maine
Volunteer
Recruitment
The
Maine Association of Psychiatric Physicians invites their
members express their consideration of how we might become
more engaged in order to better meet likely challenges in
the future. At the same time, I would like to present a
set of committees and to ask each member to volunteer to
join one or more of these committees. Our
current committees are:
- Nominations
and Elections
- Membership
- Ethics
- Bylaws
- Budget
- Governmental
& Legislative Affairs
- Public
Affairs
- Disaster Planning
- Program
(Education)
- Strategic
(long-term) Planning
- Clinical
Practices Committee
- Consultation Project
- Communications
If you
are interested in participating on any of these committees,
please contact:
Edward Pontius, MD, President, MPA:
ed.pontius@gmail.com
Janis Petzel, MD, President-Elect, MPA:
Janis.petzel@MaineGeneral.org
Warene Eldridge, District Branch Coordinator:
weldridge@mainemed.com
The
Consultation Project
Maine
is a predominantly rural state, with a population of 1.2 million.
Most of the 300 psychiatrists are geographically concentrated
in the lower quarter of the state, leaving family practitioners
and other primary care providers throughout the state without
access to psychiatric consultation. The Maine Psychiatric
Association is attempting to address this problem with an
innovative program called The Consultation Project. More
information...
Proposed
Legislation: LD 1826
Emergency
preamble. Whereas, Acts of the Legislature do not become effective
until 90 days after adjournment unless enacted as emergencies;
and
Whereas,
there is no procedure in place for the safe and effective
disposal of unused or expired pharmaceuticals; and
Whereas,
these unused or expired medications often are toxic; and
Whereas,
these medications frequently end up in the illegal drug market,
threatening the health and lives of Maine citizens; and
Whereas,
in the judgment of the Legislature, these facts create an
emergency within the meaning of the Constitution of Maine
and require the following legislation as immediately necessary
for the preservation of the public peace, health and safety;
now, therefore,
Be it
enacted by the People of the State of Maine as follows:
Sec.
1. 22 MRSA c. 604 is enacted to read:
CHAPTER
604
DISPOSAL
OF PHARMACEUTICALS
§2700.
Unused Pharmaceutical Disposal Program
1. Establishment;
purpose. There is established the Unused Pharmaceutical Disposal
Program, referred to in this chapter as "the program."
The purpose of the program is to ensure the safe, effective
and proper disposal of unused or expired prescription drugs.
2. Administration.
The program is administered by the Maine Drug Enforcement
Agency, referred to in this chapter as "the agency,"
established in Title 25, section 2955.
3. Return
of pharmaceuticals. The agency shall create a system for the
return of unused or expired pharmaceuticals. The system must
involve the use of prepaid mailing envelopes into which the
unused or expired pharmaceuticals are placed and returned
to a single collection location. The prepaid mailers must
be made available to the public at various locations, including,
but not limited to, pharmacies, physicians' offices and post
offices.
4. Disposal
of pharmaceuticals. The agency shall ensure that only agency
officers handle the unused or expired pharmaceuticals received
pursuant to subsection 3. The unused or expired pharmaceuticals
must be disposed of by the agency in a manner that is designed
to be effective, secure and environmentally safe.
5. Unused
Pharmaceutical Disposal Program Fund; funding. The Unused
Pharmaceutical Disposal Program Fund, referred to in this
chapter as "the fund," is established within the
agency to be used by the director of the agency to fund or
assist in funding the program. Any balance in the fund does
not lapse but is carried forward to be expended for the same
purposes in succeeding fiscal years. The fund must be deposited
with and maintained and administered by the agency. The agency
may accept funds into the fund from any source, public or
private, including grants or contributions of money or other
things of value, that it determines necessary to carry out
the purposes of this chapter. Money received by the agency
to establish and maintain the program must be used for the
expenses of administering this chapter.
6. Rulemaking.
The agency shall by routine technical rulemaking, pursuant
to Title 5, chapter 375, subchapter 2-A, adopt rules to carry
out the purposes of this chapter.
Emergency
clause. In view of the emergency cited in the preamble, this
Act takes effect when approved.
SUMMARY
This
bill creates the Unused Pharmaceutical Disposal Program, administered
by the Maine Drug Enforcement Agency, to provide for the safe,
effective and proper disposal of unused or expired prescription
drugs. The program involves the use of prepaid mailers to
be made available and used by the public to mail unused or
expired prescription drugs to a single collection location.
The drugs received may be handled only by agency officers
and must be disposed of in a manner that ensures the safety
of the public and the environment. The director of the Maine
Drug Enforcement Agency is authorized to accept funding from
public and private sources to carry out the purposes of the
program.
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