NACDS is hailing a new amendment issued today by the Biden Administration under the current declaration of the PREP Act (Public Readiness and Emergency Preparedness Act). The important action fulfills the Biden Administration’s April 14 pledge — which came in the form of a U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) Fact Sheet — to issue an amendment that would allow “pharmacies to continue their critical roles in our [COVID-19] response.”
The move — long-advocated by NACDS — will preserve much of the pharmacy access that is now relied on and expected by Americans by extending through December 2024 selected current amendments that facilitate patients’ access to pharmacy-based care.
NACDS is reiterating the statement it shared upon the release of the April 14 HHS Fact Sheet, in which NACDS President and CEO Steven C. Anderson said:
“We appreciate the Biden Administration announcing its plans to take action to help sustain patients’ access to pharmacies, pharmacists, and pharmacy teams for vaccinations and testing. As NACDS has urged consistently and repeatedly, the clarifications and extensions announced today are vital for patient health and access, and essential for pharmacies’ planning. Of particular importance is the extension until December 2024 of the ability of pharmacists, pharmacy technicians, and pharmacy interns to provide COVID-19 vaccinations and tests, and to provide flu shots down to age three. As NACDS has emphasized, this is important for pharmacy capacity and for patient experience. We cannot emphasize enough how important this is for flu vaccination access in particular.
“NACDS continues to urge states to use this time to safeguard patient access by codifying swiftly at the state level all of the current PREP Act pharmacy-access amendments. Also, NACDS continues to urge the U.S. Congress to address another missing link: establishing the reliable Medicare payment mechanisms that are part of the necessary infrastructure for pharmacy services. It is critical that Congress pass and enact the Equitable Community Access to Pharmacist Services Act (H.R. 1770) — bipartisan legislation backed by nearly 200 groups representing patients, seniors, rural Americans, hospitals, health systems, pharmacists, and pharmacies. Seniors deserve access to the services available in pharmacies.
“America’s pharmacies and pharmacy teams continue to serve valiantly as the face of neighborhood healthcare. Notably, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), they have administered more than 302 million COVID-19 vaccinations — with 50 percent of those shots administered in underserved areas. According to a study published in the Journal of the American Pharmacists Association, during the pandemic pharmacists saved 1 million lives, kept 8 million people out of the hospital, and prevented $450 billion in healthcare costs.”
NACDS recently applauded another federal action that is critically important to support patient access and for pharmacy operations: HHS’ “Bridge Access Program for COVID-19 Vaccines and Treatments.” The new program will establish through December 2024 a public-private partnership to help maintain uninsured individuals’ access to COVID-19 care through healthcare destinations including pharmacies – an important move made particularly necessary by the transition of COVID-19 vaccines and treatments to the commercial markets. Additionally, looking beyond December 2024, NACDS provided recommendations to HHS for a long-term solution to meeting the needs of uninsured individuals.
NACDS looks forward to working with the Biden Administration, with the Congress, and with the states to continue to meet patients’ needs based on NACDS members’ unique insights from the front lines of care.
