Community Pharmacy Fairness Act of 2005 - Provides that antitrust laws shall apply to negotiations between groups of independent pharmacies and health plans and health insurance issuers in the same manner as such laws apply to collective bargaining by labor organizations under the National Labor Relations Act.
[Congressional Bills 109th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[H.R. 1671 Introduced in House (IH)]
109th CONGRESS
1st Session
H. R. 1671
To ensure and foster continued patient safety and quality of care by
making the antitrust laws apply to negotiations between groups of
independent pharmacies and health plans and health insurance issuers in
the same manner as such laws apply to collective bargaining by labor
organizations under the National Labor Relations Act.
_______________________________________________________________________
IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES
April 14, 2005
Mr. Weiner (for himself and Mr. Moran of Kansas) introduced the
following bill; which was referred to the Committee on the Judiciary
_______________________________________________________________________
A BILL
To ensure and foster continued patient safety and quality of care by
making the antitrust laws apply to negotiations between groups of
independent pharmacies and health plans and health insurance issuers in
the same manner as such laws apply to collective bargaining by labor
organizations under the National Labor Relations Act.
Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the
United States of America in Congress assembled,
SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.
This Act may be cited as the ``Community Pharmacy Fairness Act of
2005''.
SEC. 2. APPLICATION OF THE ANTITRUST LAWS TO INDEPENDENT PHARMACIES
NEGOTIATING WITH HEALTH PLANS.
(a) In General.--Any independent pharmacies who are engaged in
negotiations with a health plan regarding the terms of any contract
under which the pharmacies provide health care items or services for
which benefits are provided under such plan shall, in connection with
such negotiations, be entitled to the same treatment under the
antitrust laws as the treatment to which bargaining units which are
recognized under the National Labor Relations Act are entitled in
connection with such collective bargaining. Such a pharmacy shall, only
in connection with such negotiations, be treated as an employee engaged
in concerted activities and shall not be regarded as having the status
of an employer, independent contractor, managerial employee, or
supervisor.
(b) Protection for Good Faith Actions.--Actions taken in good faith
reliance on subsection (a) shall not be the subject under the antitrust
laws of criminal sanctions nor of any civil damages, fees, or penalties
beyond actual damages incurred.
(c) Limitation.--
(1) No new right for collective cessation of service.--The
exemption provided in subsection (a) shall not confer any new
right to participate in any collective cessation of service to
patients not already permitted by existing law.
(2) No change in national labor relations act.--This
section applies only to independent pharmacies excluded from
the National Labor Relations Act. Nothing in this section shall
be construed as changing or amending any provision of the
National Labor Relations Act, or as affecting the status of any
group of persons under that Act.
(d) Effective Date.--The exemption provided in subsection (a) shall
apply to conduct occurring beginning on the date of the enactment of
this Act.
(e) Limitation on Exemption.--Nothing in this section shall exempt
from the application of the antitrust laws any agreement or otherwise
unlawful conspiracy that excludes, limits the participation or
reimbursement of, or otherwise limits the scope of services to be
provided by any independent pharmacy or group of independent pharmacies
with respect to the performance of services that are within their scope
of practice as defined or permitted by relevant law or regulation.
(f) No Effect on Title VI of Civil Rights Act of 1964.--Nothing in
this section shall be construed to affect the application of title VI
of the Civil Rights Act of 1964.
(g) No Application to Federal Programs.--Nothing in this section
shall apply to negotiations between independent pharmacies and health
plans pertaining to benefits provided under any of the following:
(1) The Medicaid Program under title XIX of the Social
Security Act (42 U.S.C. 1396 et seq.).
(2) The SCHIP program under title XXI of the Social
Security Act (42 U.S.C. 1397aa et seq.).
(3) Chapter 55 of title 10, United States Code (relating to
medical and dental care for members of the uniformed services).
(4) Chapter 17 of title 38, United States Code (relating to
Veterans' medical care).
(5) Chapter 89 of title 5, United States Code (relating to
the Federal employees' health benefits program).
(6) The Indian Health Care Improvement Act (25 U.S.C. 1601
et seq.).
(h) Definitions.--For purposes of this section:
(1) Antitrust laws.--The term ``antitrust laws''--
(A) has the meaning given it in subsection (a) of
the first section of the Clayton Act (15 U.S.C. 12(a)),
except that such term includes section 5 of the Federal
Trade Commission Act (15 U.S.C. 45) to the extent such
section 5 applies to unfair methods of competition; and
(B) includes any State law similar to the laws
referred to in subparagraph (A).
(2) Health plan and related terms.--
(A) In general.--The term ``health plan'' means a
group health plan or a health insurance issuer that is
offering health insurance coverage.
(B) Health insurance coverage; health insurance
issuer.--The terms ``health insurance coverage'' and
``health insurance issuer'' have the meanings given
such terms under paragraphs (1) and (2), respectively,
of section 733(b) of the Employee Retirement Income
Security Act of 1974 (29 U.S.C. 1191b(b)).
(C) Group health plan.--The term ``group health
plan'' has the meaning given that term in section
733(a)(1) of the Employee Retirement Income Security
Act of 1974 (29 U.S.C. 1191b(a)(1)).
(3) Independent pharmacy.--The term ``independent
pharmacy'' means a pharmacy which is not owned (or operated) by
a publicly traded company. For purposes of the previous
sentence, the term ``publicly traded company'' means a company
that is an issuer within the meaning of section 2(a)(7) of the
Sarbanes-Oxley Act of 2002 (15 U.S.C. 7201(a)(7)).
<all>
Introduced in House
Introduced in House
Referred to the House Committee on the Judiciary.
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