10. a. The Drug Affordability Council is established in, but not of, the Department of Law and Public Safety. The purpose of the council is to formulate legislative and regulatory policy recommendations that will protect New Jersey residents, State and local governments, health benefits plans, health care providers, licensed pharmacies, and other stakeholders within the State health care system from the high costs of prescription drug products.

b. The council shall be comprised of five public members and three alternate public members, who shall participate in council deliberations in any case in which a public member is recused or if there is a vacancy on the council. Public members and alternative public members shall be appointed within 180 days following the effective date of P.L.2023, c.106 (C. 45:14-82.2 et seq.).

(1) (a) The five public members of the council shall be appointed as follows: three members shall be appointed by the Governor; one member shall be appointed by the Governor upon recommendation of the President of the Senate; and one member shall be appointed by the Governor upon recommendation of the Speaker of the General Assembly.

(b) The three alternate members of the Council shall be appointed as follows: one member shall be appointed by the Governor; one member shall be appointed by the Governor upon recommendation of the President of the Senate; and one member shall be appointed by the Governor upon recommendation of the Speaker of the General Assembly.

(2) Each public member of the council shall have expertise in health care economics, health care policy, or clinical medicine. The membership of the council shall collectively have knowledge of:

(a) the pharmaceutical business model;

(b) supply chain business models;

(c) the practice of medicine and clinical training;

(d) consumer and patient perspectives;

(e) health care cost trends and drivers;

(f) clinical and health services research; and

(g) the State’s health care marketplace.

(3) No public member of the council may be an employee or board member of, or a consultant to, a manufacturer, pharmacy benefits manager, pharmacy services administrative organization, pharmacy, pharmacist, health benefits plan carrier, or wholesale distributor or related trade association.

(4) An individual appointed to the council as a public member shall disclose, at the time of appointment, any conflict of interest, including whether the individual has an association, including a financial or personal association, that has the potential to bias or has the appearance of biasing the individual’s decision in matters related to the council or the conduct of the council’s activities.

(5) To the extent practicable and consistent with State and federal law, the membership of the council shall reflect the racial, ethnic, and gender diversity of the State.

(6) The council shall appoint a chair from among its members.

c. Public members and alternative members of the council shall serve for a term of five years, except that, of the public members first appointed, one shall serve a term of three years, two shall serve a term of four years, and two shall serve a term of five years. Public members and alternative members shall be eligible for reappointment to the council. Vacancies in the membership shall be filled in the same manner as provided for the original appointment, and members shall serve until a successor has been appointed.

d. (1) The council shall meet in open session, except the council shall meet in closed session to discuss any information confidential pursuant to section 9 of P.L.2023, c.106 (C. 45:14-82.10). The chair shall have the authority to postpone or cancel any required meeting. All meetings of the council shall be subject to the requirements of the “Senator Byron M. Baer Open Public Meetings Act,” P.L.1975, c.231 (C. 10:4-6 et seq.). Three members shall constitute a quorum for the purposes of conducting official council business. The division shall post on its Internet website information concerning public meetings of the council and reports issued by the council. Posts on the division’s Internet website shall be subject to the confidentiality requirements set forth in section 9 of P.L.2023, c.106 (C. 45:14-82.10) and subsection h. of this section.

(2) The council shall provide an opportunity for public comment at each open meeting of the council.

(3) The council shall provide the public with the opportunity to provide written comments.

(4) The council may allow expert testimony at council meetings.

e. Public members of the council shall not accept any gift or donation of services or property that indicates a potential conflict of interest or has the appearance of biasing the work of the council.

f. The council may call to its assistance and avail itself of the services of employees of the division as may be required and made available for the purposes of this section. Members of the council shall serve without compensation but may be reimbursed for expenses reasonably incurred in the performance of their official duties. The council may call to its assistance and avail itself of the services of any State, county, or municipal department, board, commission, or agency, as it may require, and as may be available to it for its purposes. The council may consult with any government entity, association, organization, or individual having knowledge or experience relevant to its work.

g. The council shall be constituted and hold its first meeting within 30 days following appointment of all public members and alternative public members pursuant to subsection b. of this section.

h. In addition to reviewing the reports issued and data collected by the division pursuant to P.L.2023, c.106 (C. 45:14-82.2 et seq.), the council may collect and review any available information regarding prescription drug product manufacturers, health benefits plan carriers, wholesale distributors, pharmacy benefits managers, and pharmacy services administrative organizations, and any other transparency data for prescription drug products which the council may access and may find useful for its work. Information obtained by the council shall be made public, excluding identifying information about a patient or information that is a trade secret; provided, however, information obtained by the council from the division that was provided by reporting entities pursuant to P.L.2023, c.106 (C. 45:14-82.2 et seq.) shall be deemed confidential in accordance with section 9 of P.L.2023, c.106 (C. 45:14-82.10), except that information that is otherwise publicly available shall not be deemed confidential solely because it was submitted to the division pursuant to P.L.2023, c.106 (C. 45:14-82.2 et seq.). The council shall impose the confidentiality protections of this subsection on any downstream third party that may receive or otherwise have access to this information.

i. The council shall review the reports issued and data collected by the division pursuant to P.L.2023, c.106 (C. 45:14-82.2 et seq.) and the information gathered under subsection h. of this section, and following such review, submit annually recommendations for legislative, regulatory or other action to the Governor and, pursuant to section 2 of P.L.1991, c.164 (C. 52:14-19.1), to the Legislature that seek to advance the goal of more affordable and accessible prescription drugs for New Jersey residents, including recommendations designed to lower the cost of prescription drug products that the council determines have led or will lead to an affordability challenge for the State health care system and for New Jersey patients and recommendations concerning the types of data to be reported pursuant to P.L.2023, c.106 (C. 45:14-82.2 et seq.). In developing and providing recommendations, the council shall consider and address in its reports the impact that any recommendation could have on research and development, access to care, or any other direct or indirect economic or social costs that the council deems relevant. Reports issued by the council shall be subject to the confidentiality requirements set forth in section 9 of P.L.2023, c.106 (C. 45:14-82.10) and subsection h. of this section.

L.2023, c.106, s.10.