[Congressional Record Volume 161, Number 48 (Monday, March 23, 2015)]
[Senate]
[Pages S1707-S1708]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                        RECOGNIZING RxIMPACT DAY

 Mr. TESTER. Mr. President, I recognize the seventh annual 
RxIMPACT Day on Capitol Hill. This is a special day where we recognize 
pharmacies' contribution to the American healthcare system. This year's 
event organized by the National Association of Chain Drug Stores, takes 
place on March 25-26. Nearly 400 individuals from the pharmacy 
community--including practicing pharmacists, pharmacy school faculty 
and students, State pharmacy leaders and pharmacy company executives--
will visit Capitol Hill. They will share their views with Congress 
about the importance of supporting legislation that protects access to 
community and neighborhood pharmacies and that utilizes pharmacists to 
improve the quality and reduce the costs of providing health care.
  Advocates from 45 States have traveled to Washington to talk about 
the pharmacy community's contributions in over 40,000 community 
pharmacies nationwide. These important health care providers are here 
to educate Congress about the value of pharmacists and protect access 
to the essential services they provide as part of our health care 
delivery system. And just as these providers traveled to meet with us, 
Members of Congress and their staff have toured retail chain pharmacies 
in our own communities more than 325 times since 2009.
  As cochair of the Senate Community Pharmacy Caucus, I recognize that 
the local pharmacist is a trusted, highly accessible health care 
provider deeply committed to providing the highest quality care in the 
most efficient manner possible. Patients have always relied on their 
local pharmacist to meet their health care needs.
  As demand for health care services continues to grow, pharmacists 
have expanded their role in health care delivery, partnering with 
physicians, nurses and other health care providers to meet their 
patients' needs. Innovative services provided by pharmacists do even 
more to improve patient health care. Pharmacists are highly valued by 
those that rely on them most--those in rural and underserved areas, as 
well as

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older Americans, and those struggling to manage chronic diseases. 
Pharmacy services improve patients' quality of life as well as health 
care affordability. By helping patients take their medications 
effectively and providing preventive services, pharmacists help avoid 
more costly forms of care. Pharmacists also help patients identify 
strategies to save money, such as through better understanding of their 
pharmacy benefits, using generic medications, and obtaining 90-day 
supplies of prescription drugs from local pharmacies.
  Pharmacists are the Nation's most accessible health care providers. 
In many communities, especially in rural areas, the local pharmacist is 
a patient's most direct link to health care. Eighty-nine percent of 
Americans reside within a 5-mile radius of a community pharmacy. 
Pharmacists are one of our Nation's most trusted health care 
professionals. Utilizing their specialized education, pharmacists play 
a major role in medication therapy management, disease-state 
management, immunizations, health care screenings, and other health 
care services designed to improve patient health and reduce overall 
health care costs. Pharmacists are also expanding their role into new 
models of care based on quality of services and outcomes, such as 
accountable care organizations, ACOs, and medical homes.
  As we refine health care reform and seek new strategies to improve 
patient care, pharmacists will play a critical role. I believe Congress 
should look at every opportunity to make sure that pharmacists are 
allowed to utilize their training to the fullest to provide the 
services that can improve care and lower costs. In recognition of the 
seventh annual RxIMPACT Day on Capitol Hill, I would like to 
congratulate pharmacy leaders, pharmacists, students, executives, and 
the entire pharmacy community, for their contributions to the good 
health of the American people.

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