Chapter Spotlight: University of Florida - St. Petersburg Campus
Submitted by: Christina Beatty
The opportunity to spread
the word about provider status for pharmacists and promote the pharmacy
profession fell into my lap and I did not have to go out of my way do it. I stumbled upon the opportunity while on
rotations at Holmes Regional Medical Center in Melbourne, FL. My preceptor at
the time, who also writes for the Space Coast Daily magazine, asked me to write
an article on any pharmacy-related hot topic.
What better hot topic to write
about than provider status for pharmacists?
I really wanted to inform the
public about the integral role that pharmacists play every day and enlighten
the public to the fact that pharmacists are not considered healthcare providers
according to CMS. There are many people out there that love his/her pharmacist who
would help us advocate for the pharmacy profession. I just wanted to get the
word out about our mission to achieve provider status and expand services that
pharmacists can offer to improve patient care.
Take a peak at what was printed below, hopefully this can serve as a model for anyone else interested in writing articles for upcoming American Pharmacists Month!
Pharmacists Are Integral Member of Healthcare Team
BREVARD COUNTY • MELBOURNE, FLORIDA — Pharmacists have earned aDoctor of Pharmacy (Pharm.D.), and are the medication experts on the health care team. Currently, pharmacists are not recognized as healthcare providers under federal law despite a growing body of evidence showing that pharmacist involvement with patients does improve health, enhance patient satisfaction and reduce health care costs.
ROLE OF PHARMACISTS ON HEALTHCARE TEAM
Although pharmacists are perhaps the most accessible professional healthcare providers, a lack of federal recognition restricts services that pharmacists can provide and be reimbursed for, such as Medication Therapy Management (MTM).
Medication Therapy Management (MTM) is one of the many services that a pharmacist can provide to help patients get the best benefit from their medications by identifying and resolving medication-related problems.
MTM is one of the many services that a pharmacist can provide to help patients get the best benefit from their medications by identifying and resolving medication-related problems. Pharmacists can identify adverse effects from medications and help improve adherence to medications by providing education on disease states and the importance of each medication.
How a pharmacist can help improve patient outcomes is illustrated by a scenario that occurred while I was working at a local retail pharmacy.
A patient was identified as having hypertension after two in-store screening blood pressure measurements suggested that it was consistently high. A brief interview with the patient revealed that the patient had stopped taking his blood pressure medications because he could not afford to see the doctor to get a refill.
We stepped in and provided education on the importance of taking blood pressure medications every day to reduce the risk of heart attacks and strokes, and were able to bridge the gap between the physician and the patient by requesting refills on behalf of the patient and providing the medications at the lowest cost possible.
PENDING LEGISLATION TO RECOGNIZE PHARM.Ds. AS HEALTHCARE PROVIDERS
On March 11, 2014, H.R. 4190 was introduced in the U.S. House of Representatives to amend Title XVIII (Medicare) of the Social Security Act to cover pharmacist services. It is a bill that would recognize pharmacists as healthcare providers and valued members of the healthcare team.
Clinical pharmacists are becoming increasingly more involved in direct patient care, both in the hospital and out-patient settings. HR 4190 recognizes pharmacists as valued members of the healthcare team, and allows and incentivizes them to use their unique skills and extensive education to enhance patient health.
H.R. 4190 allows Medicare reimbursement for certain pharmacist services in medically underserved communities.
Presently, many states allow pharmacists to provide additional services, such as immunizations, diabetes management, blood pressure screenings and routine checks, but there is currently no mechanism for pharmacists to be reimbursed by the Medicare program for their services.
This bill establishes a mechanism by which pharmacists can be reimbursed for these services they are already allowed to perform.
Many organizations, such as the American Pharmacists Association (APhA) and the American Society of Health-System Pharmacists (ASHP), are campaigning to achieve provider status for pharmacists.
WAYS YOU CAN HELP
If you think that your pharmacist has a positive impact on your health and deserves to be considered a healthcare provider, contact your congressperson today and ask them to support H.R. 4190.
For more information visit: Pharmacist.com/providerstatusrecognition
About The APhA-ASP
APhA-ASP Region 3
The American Pharmacist Association is the oldest and largest professional organization for pharmacists in the country. The Academy of Student Pharmacists is held within APhA and is comprised by student pharmacists throughout the nation who are still taking classes at their respective colleges of pharmacy. APhA-ASP puts a strong emphasis on patient care initiatives, advocacy for the profession, and overall training to become a professional in the field of pharmacy.
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