[Congressional Record Volume 164, Number 38 (Monday, March 5, 2018)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Pages E251-E252]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                     RECOGNIZING NACDS RXIMPACT DAY

                                 ______
                                 

                         HON. MARKWAYNE MULLIN

                              of oklahoma

                    in the house of representatives

                         Monday, March 5, 2018

  Mr. MULLIN. Mr. Speaker, I rise to recognize the Tenth Annual NACDS 
RxIMPACT Day on Capitol Hill. This is a special day where we will have 
the chance to recognize pharmacy's many contributions to the American 
health care system.
   Organized by the National Association of Chain Drug Stores (NACDS) 
for the past decade, this event will take place March 7-8, 2018. This 
year alone, more than 400 individuals from the pharmacy community--
including practicing pharmacists, pharmacy school faculty and students, 
state pharmacy association representatives and pharmacy company 
leaders--will visit us here on Capitol Hill. Advocates from all 50 
states will share their views with us about the importance of 
supporting their access agenda--legislative priorities that will ensure 
that our constituents will continue to have access to more than 40,000 
community and neighborhood pharmacies across the country and be better 
able to utilize pharmacists to improve health care quality while 
reducing the cost of care.
   Patients have always relied on their local pharmacist to meet their 
health care needs and we as policymakers know our local pharmacists to 
be important community leaders. They are trusted, highly accessible 
health care providers deeply committed to providing high quality, 
convenient, and efficient health care services.
   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 overall patient health and wellness.
   Pharmacists are highly valued by those that rely on them most--those 
in rural and underserved areas, as well as 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. Utilizing their 
specialized education, pharmacists play a major role in medication 
therapy management, disease-state management, immunizations, health 
care screenings,

[[Page E252]]

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.
   The pharmacy advocates of NACDS RxIMPACT Day on Capitol Hill will be 
promoting an access agenda. They know that we face difficult debates 
about the future of health care and the pharmacy community wishes to 
work with us to help in the effort to develop comprehensive and 
consistent approaches to public policy that put pharmacy's value to 
work for patients and payers. They understand well that the issues we 
are debating today are highly connected and vital to pharmacy, to all 
of health care, and to society as a whole.
   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, increase access and 
lower costs. In recognition of the Tenth Annual NACDS RxIMPACT Day on 
Capitol Hill, I would like to congratulate pharmacy leaders, 
pharmacists, students, and the entire pharmacy community represented by 
NACDS, for their contributions to the health and wellness of the 
American people.

                          ____________________