Pharmacy groups brief Congress on health, cost benefits of MTM
WASHINGTON Extending a long campaign to educate federal lawmakers on the value of pharmacy-based patient care services, three pharmacy groups Tuesday briefed members of Congress on the benefits of pharmacist-provided medication therapy management.
Hosting the briefing: the National Association of Chain Drug Stores, the National Community Pharmacists Association and the Iowa Pharmacy Association. The event was moderated by Edith Rosath, SVP pharmacy affairs and chief economist at NACDS, and included participants from the University of Tennessee College of Pharmacy, Mirixa and the University of Iowa. Rep. Dave Loebsack, D-Iowa, also addressed the informational briefing.
The briefing panel discussed patient-care benefits of MTM, the practical impact on providing healthcare to rural and underserved populations, and the cost-saving potential for inclusion within comprehensive healthcare reform legislation.
“As the face of neighborhood healthcare, pharmacists are medication experts, and are uniquely in tune with their patients’ medication needs and requirements,” said NACDS president and CEO Steve Anderson. “Pharmacist-provided medication therapy management enhances the pharmacist-patient relationship, improves communication and dialogue, encourages proper patient adherence to medication regimes, and provides unique and individual healthcare services, especially to those patients who suffer from chronic disease.”
Anderson thanked lawmakers “for listening to the nation’s medication experts at today’s informational briefing,” and cited the benefits of MTM and other pharmacy services. Those innovations, he told members of Congress, “have the ability to transform the healthcare delivery system in America and improve individual health care, encourage a healthier population while also reducing overall costs.”
NCPA EVP and CEO Bruce Roberts also addressed the gathering, admonishing lawmakers that pharmacists “are much more than the purveyors of a commodity. They offer a wide array of services that can maximize the benefits of medications for patients.
“That’s why we strongly support medication therapy management and believe those efforts can be buttressed through the legislative process,” Roberts added. He praised Rep. Loebsack, in particular, for his efforts to expand MTM services.
“Now more than ever, as we discuss healthcare reform and improving medication adherence, embracing pharmacist-provided MTM is a no-brainer,” Roberts noted.