On May 17, 2017, CMS released the Proposed Part D DIR (Direct and Indirect Remuneration) Reporting Requirements for 2016 and postponed the 2016 DIR Reporting deadline.

Each year, CMS releases Proposed Part D DIR Reporting Requirements for interested parties to review and comment on. The DIR Reporting Requirements tend to change slightly from year-to-year as the Part D program has developed and CMS gains further understanding of rebates and price concessions that a Part D plan sponsor may receive or pay.  Additionally, some changes in DIR Reporting Requirements are the result of changes to Part D regulations.  After reviewing the comments, CMS publishes the Final Part D DIR Reporting Requirements, typically in late May, and then plan sponsors submit their DIR Report by June 30^th.

These Proposed DIR Reporting Requirements are the first that reflect the change in the definition of “negotiated prices” as set forth at 42 C.F.R. § 423.100. Although the discussion regarding changing the definition of negotiated prices started multiple years ago and was finalized in 2014, the change was not effective until January 1, 2016.  CMS’s proposed changes related to the updated definition of negotiated prices are captured in Summary DIR Report columns DIR #8 and DIR #9.

The deadline for submitting comments is June 2, 2017.

Typically, Part D plan sponsors must submit their DIR reports to CMS by June 30^th of the year following the close of the plan year (June 30, 2017 for 2016 DIR).  CMS is postponing the deadline for 2016 DIR submission so that it has time to review the comments it receives and so that Part D plan sponsors have adequate time to analyze and categorize their data in the manner required by the upcoming Final Part D DIR Reporting Requirements. CMS will announce the 2016 DIR submission deadline in the Final Part D DIR Reporting Requirements for 2016 and it appears that plan sponsors will have approximately 30 days to analyze and categorize their data.