State Reps. Brown, Ginter Champion Legislation to Simplify Prescription Process

The Ohio House of Representatives today passed House Bill 116 with broad bipartisan support. This bill, sponsored by State Representatives Tim Ginter and Tim Brown seeks to provide for partial drug prescription refills for the purpose of synchronizing multiple prescriptions for one patient.

“I am very proud to have sponsored this legislation, which will have a real, positive impact on Ohioans who are balancing multiple prescriptions every month,” said Ginter. “Being able to fill all of your drugs at one time per month will make life easier for patients and caregivers, saving time, money, and countless trips to the pharmacy. Additionally, this will improve the relationship between the pharmacist and the patient. Most importantly, this will improve health outcomes for millions of Ohioans.”

The bill is an attempt to enact a process known as “medical synchronization”, or “med sync”, in Ohio. “Med sync” simplifies patient and caregiver lives by reducing the amount of visits that a patient needs to make to the pharmacy to get his or her needed medication, allowing them to permissively participate in a process with their physician and pharmacist to align their medications so that they can be refilled on the same day.

“Allowing individuals to decide when to synchronize their prescription pick up date will increase adherence to the medications they have been prescribed, yielding better health outcomes and lower overall medical costs,” said Brown.

Currently, some pharmacies and Medicare Part D allow the use of a “med sync” program. HB 116 would extend this process to commercial plans and Medicaid, keeping patients on track with their medication, boosting adherence to their physician-recommended treatment, and making the process more affordable for Ohioans.

HB 116 now moves to the Ohio Senate for further consideration.