NCPDP offers compelling testimony on Proposals for a National Health Plan Identifier

The National Council for Prescription Drug Programs (NCPDP) offered compelling testimony to the National Committee on Vital Health Statistics (NCVHS) last week on Proposals for a National Health Plan Identifier, citing the existing operational processes that have been successfully used in the pharmacy industry for over 25 years. The not-for-profit organization provided expert counsel and recommendations on the impact of the proposals to the pharmacy industry - which has realized tremendous operational efficiencies, improvements in patient care quality, and cost reductions by embracing automation and industry-wide adoption of standards.

NCPDP's testimony, delivered by Lynne Gilbertson, its Vice President, Standards Development, also included a formal request for NCPDP to be named as an operating rules entity, as a qualified non-profit entity that fully satisfies the criteria established in H.R. 3590. Gilbertson's testimony was supported by evidence of NCPDP's 30 years of experience developing standards based on business requirements through collaboration, as well as the organization's mission, infrastructure, consensus-based processes and operational procedures.

Margaret Weiker, Chair of the Accredited Standards Committee X12 (ASC X12) Insurance Subcommittee, gave powerful endorsement of NCPDP to NCVHS as an ANSI accredited candidate with the expertise to serve as the Operating Rule Entity for the Healthcare Industry under the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act (PPACA):

"ASC X12 supports NCPDP being named as an operating rule entity not only for the pharmacy services sector but for all of the healthcare industry. The reasons for this endorsement are NCPDP is an ANSI accredited organization, they have the infrastructure to support being named as an operating rule entity without any changes to their Bylaws or Standing Operating Procedures, many of their members use the ASC X12 standards, and since the first set of rules will focus on eligibility and claim status which have moved to a primarily real-time environment, NCPDP wrote the book on real-time healthcare data exchanges."