| The CT General Assembly adjourned sine die on June 7th. Odd numbered years are “long sessions” in which the legislature is charged with adopting a new biennial state budget. Due to favorable revenue estimates, a strong budget reserve fund, and the last few years of federal ARPA funding receipts, the $51 billion budget was adopted in a considerably and fairly unusually bipartisan fashion without relying on tax increases and while remaining under the spending cap.
Sections of note Included within the budget implementation bill, HB 6941, include the following:
340B Program: Makes various changes affecting participants in the federal 340B drug pricing program, such as (1) prohibiting PBMs from discriminating against 340B covered entities in connection with dispensing covered drugs, (2) requiring drug manufacturers to comply with specified federal pricing requirements when selling covered drugs to these entities, and (3) allowing covered entities or the attorney general to seek court relief if a PBM seeks to enforce contract provisions that violate the bill. Roberta B. Willis Scholarship Program: Extends eligibility for the state’s debt-free community college program to returning students; makes various changes to the Roberta B. Willis Scholarship program, including requiring FY 24 awards to use ARPA funds first and excluding regional-community technical colleges from the program.
Endometriosis Data and Biorepository Program: Requires UConn Health Center (UCHC), by January 1, 2024, to develop an endometriosis data and biorepository program to enable and promote research on (1) early detection of endometriosis in adolescents and adults and (2) the development of therapeutic strategies to improve clinical management of the condition. It must do this in collaboration with an independent, nonprofit biomedical research institution in Connecticut that is engaged in endometriosis research with UCHC. Under the bill, UCHC must annually report on the program’s implementation to the Public Health Committee, starting by January 1, 2025.
Prohibition on Reviews of Recurring Rx Drugs to Treat Autoimmune Disorders, MS, or Cancer: Prohibits health carriers (e.g., insurers and HMOs) from requiring a prospective or concurrent review of a recurring prescription drug used to directly treat an autoimmune disorder, multiple sclerosis, or cancer that they already approved through utilization review.
Step Therapy: Reduces how long an insurer can require an insured to use step therapy for prescription drugs from 60 to 30 days and prohibits step therapy from January 1, 2024, to January 1, 2027, for drugs used to treat schizophrenia, major depressive disorder, or bipolar disorder. It also establishes a 23-member task force to study step therapy data collection.
In conjunction with members, advocates and allies of the life sciences sector, BioCT worked to mitigate a number of sections within a major piece of legislation proposed by the administration (see this link for the Governor’s summary of his bill as originally introduced). We are grateful to legislature and those in the executive branch for their willingness to negotiate to mitigate many of the concerning sections. Highlights from the final negotiated House Bill 6669 include the following:
- Requires the state comptroller to (1) establish a Drug Discount Card Program for state residents and allows him to join with other states or a regional consortium to pool prescription drug purchasing power and (2) study the feasibility of centralizing statewide contracts to consolidate public entities’ purchasing of prescription drugs.
- Requires the Department of Consumer Protection to report on a framework for a program to inform physicians about when drug patents expire and generic alternatives exist for drugs with recently expired patents.
- Requires pharmaceutical manufacturers that employ pharmaceutical sales representatives to register annually with DCP as “pharmaceutical marketing firms” and give DCP a list of their sales representatives; requires related reporting and disclosures; authorizes DCP to take disciplinary actions for violations.
- Requires the Office of Health Strategy, in consultation with the Insurance Department, to report on PBMs’ prescription drug distribution practices in Connecticut and other states.
- Allows a wider range of drugs to be included on OHS’s annual list of 10 drugs that are provided at substantial cost to the state, and gives manufacturers the opportunity, following a public comment period, to show that a drug does not meet inclusion criteria.
- Makes various changes affecting participants in the federal 340B drug pricing program, such as (1) prohibiting certain provisions in contracts between 340B covered entities (including pharmacies) and pharmacy benefits managers, including lower reimbursement rates than for non-participants and (2) requiring DSS to convene a working group to study various issues related to the program.
Research and Development Tax Credit
BioCT supported a change to CT tax code during the session this year that would have increased the cash refund that a qualifying small biotech company may receive for R&D and R&E tax credits from 65% up to 100%. While we successfully advocated for the inclusion of an increase to 80% in the legislature’s budget proposal as well as in House Bill 6932, unfortunately no such change was included in the final adopted budget. BioCT will continue to partner with stakeholders to attempt to enact this tax credit increase to the allowable cash refund for biotechs in the next budget cycle.
Next Steps
BioCT has a legislative committee comprised of key stakeholders in the biotech/life sciences sector. This week we will be discussing our strategy to support additional initiatives as we begin to prepare advocacy efforts for the 2024 Legislative Session. We hope that we can count on everyone in the life sciences sector in CT to do all we can to ensure CT remains a favorable state for our industry. |
