VICTORY!

It worked!  All of our efforts have finally paid off!

Governor Cuomo signed our legislation into law last night!

“AMMO” or Anti-Mandatory Mail Order gives patients a choice:  mail order pharmacy OR community pharmacy for their prescriptions, with the same benefits, with the same price for the patient.  It was a common sense law that puts in a protection for patients against the mega-corporation pharmacy benefit managers.

How it works from here is as follows:

1. It has to become law, which is 13 business days after he signs it.  This is about New Year’s.
2. Any contract written thereafter will not allow mandatory mail order.  Some insurances have 2-3 year contracts, so this will take 2-3 years to be 100% official.
3. You will be notified with your next benefit notice probably

This truly could not have been done without the patients of Village and Woodstock Apothecary.  You signed petitions, called, emailed, and commented on blogs.  It was a true grassroots effort and restores my faith in the system.  The big guys don’t always make the rules; they don’t always win.

I feel that this is the beginning of something big.  With the “Occupy” movements fresh in our minds, I believe Americans are realizing that the small businesses that were taken for granted are necessary for us to survive as a nation.  The big guys grow in a manner to benefit stakeholders only and they will step on all in their path to get it.

In the world of pharmacy, this means attacking the pharmacy benefits managers.  They lack transparency and create market conditions that favor themselves at the expense of good care.  We will be working to reclaim what was taken in an effort to care for our patient family for years to come.

Thanks again.  This would not have happened without our awesome patients.

You rock.

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