Register Now for the Summer Meeting
The Summer NLARx meeting is Wednesday, August 18 from 9:30 am – 3 pm at the Maine Historical Society, 489 Congress Street in beautiful Portland, Maine in the Earle G. Shettleworth Jr. Lecture Hall. We have scheduled the meeting so that legislators attending the Council of State Governments/Eastern Regional Conference (CSG/ERC) annual meeting on August 15-18 in Portland will also be able to participate in the NLARx meeting. Note CSG registrants may register for a lobsterbake the evening of August 17 – so come early and enjoy the best lobster in the world!
Agenda | Registration | Hotel | Transportation | Parking

AGENDA
We will have presentations on the nitty-gritty of health reform and how it affects state pharmaceutical policy, including the Medicaid rebate changes, the role of states implementing and “wrapping around” federal Sunshine Act provisions, reports from the states including details of Vermont’s new sample disclosure policy, Part D and more. Our agenda is still being finalized; watch this page for details.

Speakers | Biographies (Word Document, 33 KB)
Nancy B. Kelleher, Maine State Director, AARP, “Donuts and Dollars: How Federal Health Reform Affects Medicare Part D”

Jude Neveux, Director, Business Development, Goold Health Systems “State Medicaid Rebates after National Health Reform”

Robin Lunge, Esq., Vermont Legislative Council, “ Federal Health Care Reform: One State’s Perspective on Prescription Drug Initiatives”

Ken Libertoff, Ph. D., Executive Director, Vermont Association for Mental Health "The Vermont Drug Sample Initiative…A Sample of Powerful and Effective Marketing!"

Vermont Rep. Suzy Wizowaty and Vermont Senator Kevin Mullin (invited): “Legislative Response: Vermont’s Sample Policy and Impact of Affordable Care Act”

REGISTRATION
Download Registration Form here: Word, PDF
Registration fee schedule:
- $25 for legislators and legislative staff. Fees are waived for legislators and legislative staff from DC, ME, VT, WV.
- $950 for businesses and business trade organizations (including nonprofit business trade organizations)
- $150 for nonbusiness, nonprofit organizations with annual budget more than $250,000
- $90 for nonbusiness, nonprofit organizations with annual budget of $250,000 or less, and for academic institutions.
***There are no walk-in registrations permitted except for legislators & their staff***

Mail checks made out to “NLARx” and completed registration form by August 13, 2010 to:
Tina Duffany
National Legislative Association on Prescription Drug Prices
P.O. Box 492
Hallowell, ME 04347
Forms may also be emailed to info@reducedrugprices.org. Questions? Call 207-622-5597.
Note: We do not accept credit cards.

HOTEL INFORMATION
If you are attending the CSG/ERG meeting, you can register for a room at the Holiday Inn by the Bay or the Eastland Hotel on the CSG meeting site here. NLARx is not reserving a room block so you should make your own reservations. Here are a few suggestions for hotels in the Portland area:

For hotels closest to the Maine Historical Society:
Link to Google map for area hotel listings.

Eastland Park Hotel - 0.07 miles away
157 High Street, Portland, ME 04101
(207) 775-5411
Rooms range from $170- $211 per night without discounts

Holiday Inn Portland-By The Bay - 0.09 miles away
88 Spring Street, Portland, ME 04101
(207) 775-2311
Rooms range from $163.20- $209.00 per night without discounts

Hilton Garden Inn Portland Downtown Waterfront - 0.69 miles away
65 Commercial St, Portland, ME 04101
(207) 780-0780
Rooms range from $237- $324 per night without discounts

INN At St John - 0.79 miles away
939 Congress St, Portland, ME 04102
(207) 773-6481
Rooms range from $89- $175 per night without discounts

Hotels closer to the Portland International Jetport:

Embassy Suites - 0.25 miles away
1050 Westbrook Street, Portland, ME 04102
(207) 775-2200
Rooms range from $169- $379 per night without discounts

Hilton Garden Inn Portland Airport - 0.41 miles away
145 Jetport Blvd, Portland, ME 04102
(207) 828-1117
Rooms range from $188 and up per night without discounts

Doubletree-Portland aka Clarion Hotel Airport - 1.2 miles away
1230 Congress St, Portland, ME 04102
(207) 774-5611
Rooms range from $159-$199 per night without discounts

La Quinta Inn & Suites Portland - 1.53 miles away
340 Park Ave, Portland, ME 04102
(207) 871-0611
Rooms range from $145-$165 per night without discounts

TRANSPORTATION INFORMATION
Portland Jetport is served by AirTran, Continental, Delta, Jet Blue, United and US Airways. More Portland Jetport air travel information here.

For information about Taxis and their rates, Rental Cars, Car Services and Public Transportation see the Jetport’s ground transportation page: http://www.portlandjetport.org/portland_jetport_info/ground_transportation

Amtrak’s Downeaster from Boston and Concord Trailways buses are served by the Portland Transportation Center convenient to downtown.

See www.gpmetrobus.com for local Portland bus route maps and schedules or call 207-774-0351 for more information.

EVENT PARKING INFORMATION
There is no on site parking.
MapQuest PDF, Site Link
Parking Facilities Convenient to Casco Bay Lines PDF
List of Downtown Parking Facilities PDF, Site Link
Directory Parking Downtown Map PDF, Site Link
http://www.ci.portland.me.us/parking/offstreet.asp

Other Helpful Sites
http://www.comevisitportlandme.com
http://www.visitportland.com
http://www.ci.portland.me.us
http://www.portlandmaine.com
http://www.portlandmaine.gov/services.htm#P

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PharmedOut Conference - June 25, 2010, Washington DC

"Prescription for Conflict: Should Industry Fund Continuing Medical Education?"

Speakers include Paul Thacker, an investigator for Sen. Chuck Grassley (R-Iowa), Edmund Pellegrino, MD, Professor Emeritus of Medicine and Medical Ethics at GUMC, Carl Elliott, MD, PhD, a philosopher at the University of Minnesota and author of "Better than Well," Joel Lexchin, MD, University of Toronto, and several former industry insiders. We plan to offer continuing education credits to physicians and nurses. The conference, to be held on Friday, June 25, 2010, is open to the public. It is a collaborative effort with the Kennedy Institute of Ethics and the Georgetown University Law Center.

We intend to address the questions:  Does industry funding of CME adversely affect the educational content of CME?  If so, can commercial bias be assessed and mitigated?  Registration information, a flyer for posting, the agenda, and travel information are also available at:
http://www.pharmedout.org/conference.htm.

NLARx Presentations at the November 2009 American Public Health Association

• NLARx Sponsored Panel: Evidence Based Prescribing and conflicts of interest in Drug Policy and Pharmacy Services (Page contains bios and presentations from NLARx Director Sharon Treat; DC Councilmember David Catania; and Prescription Policy Choices Analyst Jennifer Reck.)
• Sharon Treat. A New Trade Agreement on Pharmaceutical Pricing and Reimbursement?

Presentations from November 2009 NLARx Meeting in Boston

• Sharon Treat. Iowa Drug Donation Repository Program.
• Georgia Maheras, Community Catalyst. Disclosure: MA and Beyond.
• Dr. Sarah Cutrona. Free Drug Samples: Are We Helping Our Patients?
• David Balto. Reining in PBM Mischief After Health Care Reform.
• Ann Woloson. Safe Prescribing: Protecting Kids While Controlling Costs.
• Maine Rep. Anne Perry. Unused Household Pharmaceutical Disposal.

NLARx Presentations to the National Conference of State Legislators, July 2009

• Vermont Senator Peter Shumlin, Senate President Pro Tem, Jennifer Carbee, and Robin Lunge, Vermont Legislative Council. Vermont’s Pharmaceutical and Device Manufacturer Gift Ban and Disclosure Law.
• Allan Coukell. Director, Pew Prescription Project. Physician Payments Sunshine Act,Independent Drug Education and Outreach (IDEA) Act:Updates & Effects on state programs