NDC Update: ASHP’s Data Quoted in Suit to Block NDC Requirement

8/22/2008

The Safety Net Hospitals for Pharmaceutical Access (SNHPA) has filed a suit to stop implementation of a new Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services requirement that hospital outpatient departments report unique 11-digit National Drug Code ( NDC ) information to state Medicaid agencies.

The suit, filed with the U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia , quotes an ASHP study  that demonstrates the burden this requirement would place on hospitals, as well as the negative impact it could have on patient care. ASHP’s study reveals it would cost hospitals $10.80 per claim and take approximately 24 minutes per claim to comply with the new requirement, significantly more than the nine cents and 15 seconds per claim that CMS estimated. The study also finds that 60 percent of hospitals do not currently have information systems that would allow compliance.

This law suit is part of a larger effort to resolve this issue through Congress, CMS, and now the federal courts. ASHP continues to work with the SNHPA and other stakeholders to exempt hospital outpatient departments from this burdensome requirement.