Minutes of the Medicaid Pharmaceutical and Therapeutics Committee

Transcription

1 Minutes of the Medicaid Pharmaceutical and Therapeutics Committee Details Date: March 3, 2004 Minutes Time: 6:30 p.m. to 8:20 p.m. Place: Mezzanine Conference Room 2A&B at The CT Department of Social Services 25 Sigourney Street, Hartford, CT A meeting of the Medicaid Pharmaceutical and Therapeutics (P & T) Committee was held on Wednesday, March 3, The meeting convened at 6:30 p.m. Attendees: Committee Member Attendees: Peggy Manning Memoli, Richard Carbray, Dr. Carl Sherter, Dr. Robert Zavaski, Dr. Joseph Misiak, Dr. Brian Karsif, Stella Cretella, Dr. Kenneth Marcus, Dr. Lucille Russell, Holly Bessoni-Lutz and Margaret Katherine Amble. Committee Members Not In Attendance: Dr. Dorothy Stubbe, Susan Fehmel and Lawrence Sobel DSS Attendees: Michael Starkowski, Deputy Commissioner; Marcia Mains, Evelyn Dudley, James Zakszewski, Phyllis Hyman and Linda Poltorak Opening Remarks: Michael Starkowski welcomed the members to the second meeting of the Pharmaceutical and Therapeutics (P&T) Committee. He announced that Marc Ryan and Senator Kevin Sullivan were on the agenda and now unable to attend due to a legislative conflict. Mr. Starkowski outlined several legislative initiatives currently pending at the legislature and stated he would be testifying on many of them this week before the Human Services and Public Health Committees. Review and Acceptance of February 10, 2004 Minutes: There were no corrections or changes to the minutes of the February 10 th meeting. Dr. Carl Sherter moved acceptance of the minutes. The motion was seconded by Dr. Brian Karsif and passed by a unanimous vote. Election of Chair and Vice Chair: Dr. Carl Sherter was nominated as Chair and Peggy Manning Memoli was nominated as Vice Chair. There were no additional nominations. A vote was taken of the membership through a show of hands. Both Dr. Sherter and Ms. Memoli were elected by a unanimous vote of the members present.

2 Page 2 Review of Certain Freedom of Information Act Provisions Attorney Phyllis Hyman from the Department s Legal Division provided an overview of the Freedom of Information Act to the membership. She indicated that, except as other wise provided in federal law or state statutes, and with certain other exceptions listed in the Freedom of Information Act, the documents produced and reviewed by the P&T Committee are public records. Also, except for executive sessions, meetings are public. She further stated that physical presence is not required for there to be a meeting and went on to provide a hypothetical example. Attorney Hyman distributed an outline, which highlights certain provisions of the Freedom of Information Act, and copies of some of the statutes.. With regard to list serve usage and limitations, Attorney Hyman indicated that a draft declaratory ruling of the Freedom of Information Commission concluded that and voice mail communications among a quorum of agency members may constitute a meeting of that public agency, if the communications relate to a matter over which the agency has supervision, jurisdiction, control or advisory powers. Dr. Kenneth Marcus pointed out that a good rule of operation is that anything put down on paper could show up in the newspaper. Individual Member Liability Attorney Hyman indicated that the membership is not personally liable for damages or injury, not wanton, reckless or malicious where caused in discharge of duties or within scope of employment. The state will indemnify any state official or employee, if above conditions apply and they would be represented by the Attorney General s office. Protocols for Input to P & T Committee Deputy Commissioner Michael Starkowski indicated that the Committee might want to establish a protocol for public input, input from interested parties or public officials.

3 Page 3 Much discussion focused on the protocol for input from the public and interested parties. Attorney Hyman indicated that there is no legal requirement that a public agency allow people to participate. It was decided that any public officials (Legislators, Commissioners etc.) would need to follow the same protocol as the others. In addition, those who needed audiovisual equipment for their presentation would need to supply their own. Following the discussion, Vice Chair Peggy Manning Memoli moved that individuals interested in addressing the Committee make their request directly to the Chair or Vice Chair and the decision to allow individuals to speak/present would be at the discretion of the chair or vice chair.. The subject matter they would like to cover would need to coincide with the agenda. They would need to provide a written document at least two weeks prior to the meeting outlining the subject matter they wish to cover and they would be notified, if accepted, at least one week prior to the meeting. The document could not be more than 10 pages in length and in a font not smaller than 12. Each presentation could not last more than 5 minutes and the first 30 minutes of the agenda would be designated as the public portion. The motion was seconded by Dr. Carl Sherter and carried unanimously. Protocol for Access to Additional Expertise Deputy Commissioner Michael Starkowski stated that the Committee may want to seek input from others with specific expertise. Dr. Carl Sherter indicated that the Committee should not be limited only to the expertise of the Committee s participating membership. If members believe they do not have enough data to make a particular decision, the Committee would seek more information.. Mr. Starkowski stated that, for now, the CT Medical Society is available to provide additional expertise. DSS Pharmacy Primer Distribution & Discussion Evelyn Dudley presented an overview of the department s pharmacy programs. The presentation covered the four pharmacy programs - Medicaid, SAGA, ConnPACE and CADAP. Discussion of Pharmacy DUR Board Interaction Richard Carbray, also a member of DUR Board, provided an overview of the DUR Board s responsibilities. He indicated that a good portion of its work is to review data on particular cases provided to it. He noted that when the DUR Board was first formed, it developed by-laws.

4 Page 3 Evelyn Dudley noted that a sample set of by-laws was included in the binder distributed to the membership at the February 10 th meeting. Discussion focused on the relationship of the DUR Board and the Committee and the similarities, if any. It was noted that the DUR Board was established to be an independent body with federal requirements. The P & T Committee was established by state statute and designed to deal with a variety of issues. Next Meeting Agenda Discussion focused on the need for the Committee to develop by-laws and a mission statement and to what degree the Committee would or could set its mission, since the statute is very clear. Attorney Hyman stated that the Committee is authorized by statute to do certain things. Chairperson Dr. Sherter indicated the need to talk more about what the Committee can and cannot do because of the clarity of the statute. Dr. Sherter stated that future discussion about the by-laws and mission should include Attorney Hyman. It was decided that the Agenda for the next meeting of the Pharmaceutical and Therapeutics Committee would be: (1) By-laws (2) The Committee s Mission Date of the Next Meeting The next meeting of the Pharmaceutical and Therapeutics Committee will be Wednesday, April 14 th at 6:30 p.m. Deputy Commissioner Starkowski indicated that there might be a problem with the current location but would inform the Committee prior to the meeting. The meeting adjourned at 8:20 p.m. Respectfully Submitted by Linda A. Poltorak

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