Content about Medication therapy management

A group representing independent pharmacies is urging Congress to cut the deficit by reducing healthcare expenditures, but “without compromising patients’ access to their pharmacy of choice or harming local jobs.” In a letter sent last month to the Joint Select Committee on Deficit Reduction, the National Community Pharmacists Association suggested increasing use of generic drugs, encouraging such services as medication therapy management, collecting manufacturer rebates, and allowing patients to choose their pharmacies and avoid requirements to use mail-order services.

BURLINGTON, Vt. — Pharmacists involved in a Wisconsin project focused on seniors' health will use a Web-based software platform to help elderly patients stick to their medication regimens.

ROCHESTER, N.Y. — PharmaSmart unveiled its new medication therapy management software at the National Association of Chain Drug Stores' Pharmacy and Technology Conference in Boston, the blood-pressure monitor manufacturer said.

RALEIGH, N.C. — Kerr Drug president and CEO Tony Civello has been named "Tarheel of the Week" by the Raleigh, N.C., News & Observer.

In a story published in its Sunday edition, the newspaper emphasized Civello's efforts to expand the healthcare services that pharmacies provide, something that has been a hallmark of his leadership of Kerr Drug.

ALEXANDRIA, Va. — Prescription drug costs “cannot be viewed in a vacuum” and pharmacist-provided medication therapy management and counseling must be considered in any comprehensive cost-benefit analysis, the National Association of Chain Drug Stores and National Community Pharmacists Association urged in a joint statement issued on Thursday amid the release of two studies on medication adherence.

ALEXANDRIA, Va. — The National Association of Chain Drug Stores announced on Thursday that it submitted comments to the U.S. Senate Health, Education, Labor and Pensions Committee, which held a hearing Thursday titled "FDA User Fees: Advancing Public Health," outlining community pharmacy's commitment to addressing drug safety and the appropriate use of prescription medications to help improve patient health.

The latest drug trend report from pharmacy benefit manager Express Scripts estimated that if patients using maintenance medications used cheaper therapies when possible, adhered to their medication therapies and used home delivery, it could eliminate $403 billion in pharmacy waste every year.


WHAT IT MEANS AND WHY IT’S IMPORTANT — When the pharmacist talks, people listen. The real gem to come out of this survey is where that pharmacist is standing when delivering that over-the-counter recommendation. (Here’s a hint: It ain’t behind the pharmacy counter.)

(THE NEWS: Survey: Many pharmacists offer guidance on OTC purchases. For the full story, click here.)


In the May issue of Consumer Reports, a report found that such independents as McKesson’s Health Mart franchise group are delivering the goods.


McKesson helped capitalize on what has always been an exemplary Health Mart patient experience at the top of last year with a multi-
million-dollar ad campaign that included an ad during the New Orleans Saints/Indianapolis Colts Super Bowl. That 2010 campaign featured real Health Mart pharmacists with stories on how they have impacted their local communities by taking the time to care and provide special services.


Since taking the reins at the National Association of Chain Drug Stores four years ago, Steve Anderson has reshaped the organization and led an aggressive — and quite successful — campaign to raise pharmacy’s profile and give it a bigger stake in reshaping the overwrought healthcare system.

ALEXANDRIA, Va. — Following the release of U.S. Pharmacopeia's Proposed General Chapter Prescription Container Labeling recommendations, the National Association of Chain Drug Stores issued a letter to USP urging flexibility and an open dialogue with pharmacy and prescriber communities as review of the recommendations continues.

ALEXANDRIA, Va. — Looking to further communicate the important role pharmacy plays in the healthcare delivery system, the National Association of Chain Drug Stores president and CEO Steve Anderson ran an opinion column in a "Medication Non-Adherence" supplement published Monday by Mediaplanet and distributed in The Washington Post.