NACDS urges Congress to focus on adherence, pharmacy access
ALEXANDRIA, Va. In a letter to House speaker Nancy Pelosi, D-Calif., and Senate majority leader Harry Reid, D-Nev., the National Association of Chain Drug Stores commented on aspects of President Obama’s fiscal year 2011 budget proposal that directly related to pharmacy’s ability to serve as the face of neighborhood health care.
“We are committed to working with Congress and the Obama administration to advance a budget that meets the healthcare needs of our nation’s citizens, and provides opportunities to expand the role of neighborhood pharmacies as healthcare providers,” wrote NACDS president and CEO Steve Anderson.
In the letter, NACDS emphasized the following points:
- The need to extend the currently in-place increase in the Federal Medical Assistance Percentage, which provides federal funding for state Medicaid programs;
- The opportunities to use pharmacy services to help patients take their medications appropriately, as part of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention’s proposed Big Cities initiative targeting chronic diseases;
- NACDS’ support for the president’s proposal to increase funding for Drug Enforcement Administration staffing to battle methamphetamine abuse; and
- The need to include anti-fraud, waste and abuse programs in Medicare and Medicaid that are targeted to high-risk areas, as opposed to counterproductive measures such as the “one-size-fits-all” surety bond and accreditation requirements for providers of durable medical equipment under Medicare.