HDMA honors three legislators with Rx Safety and Healthcare Leadership Award

ARLINGTON, Va. — The Healthcare Distribution Management Association on Wednesday recognized three members of Congress — Sen. Michael Bennet, D-Colo.; Rep. Bob Latta, R-Ohio; and Rep. Jim Matheson, D-Utah — with the association’s Rx Safety and Healthcare Leadership Award. 

The award honors public officials for their leadership and commitment to policies that promote the safe and efficient delivery of lifesaving medicines to patients nationwide.

These legislators have demonstrated a commitment to the healthcare supply chain and patient safety by championing federal legislation to establish a uniform pharmaceutical traceability framework, the association noted. 

Congressmen Latta and Matheson were original co-sponsors of H.R. 1919, the Safeguarding America’s Pharmaceuticals Act, while Senator Bennet sponsored the Drug Supply Chain Security Act (S. 959). This legislation eliminates a cumbersome 50-state patchwork of traceability requirements, keeping medicines flowing efficiently and effectively. The legislation also enhances patient safety by further ensuring the authenticity and security of the pharmaceuticals traveling through the healthcare supply chain.

“It only takes one federal traceability solution for the pharmaceutical supply chain to serve all fifty states safely and reliably," stated John Gray, HDMA president and CEO. "Creating this solution has been the culmination of nearly 10 years of effort on the part of the industry and our legislative champions,” he said. “We applaud these three legislators for their tenacity of working with supply chain stakeholders to move this critical legislation forward.”