Association Perspective
Thomas E. Menighan, BSPharm, MBA, ScD (Hon), FAPhA, EVP and CEO
It’s 2020, a year once only represented as a distant future in sci-fi movies. Although we’ve now arrived, in some ways we’re facing realities as strange as any fictional account could portray. We’re a deeply divided nation. The upcoming elections mean that things will likely get more difficult before they get better.
But in pharmacy, it’s never been more critical that we stick together.
Pharmacies are struggling to stay open, particularly those serving Medicare, Medicaid, and uninsured patients—the patients who need pharmacists’ services the most. Pharmacy deserts are growing as a result.
At the same time, many in the profession are facing a crisis of spirit. While most are in fulfilling careers, a significant share of pharmacists is concerned about jobs and hours, doing more with less, and being forced to cope with administrivia and competing demands on their time. As a profession, we have worked hard to advance practice and pharmacist-delivered patient care, but many pharmacists’ work–life balance is off-kilter. Too many pharmacists are feeling unfulfilled and stressed as they struggle to balance work and life. If “misery loves company,” we have plenty.
In the year ahead, APhA will focus its work on the issues that are keeping pharmacists from practicing the kind of pharmacy we all envisioned when we chose this profession—and the kind of pharmacy we know is possible and is best for our patients: ending abusive PBM practices like retroactive DIR fees, building well-being and resilience among the pharmacy workforce, and continuing the fight for federal and state provider status recognition are priorities this year.
Keep an eye out for news on our work with coalition members dedicated to educating policymakers on the devastating impact of DIR fees (check out our article on the latest on page 38), and the products of the APhA task force on well-being. Be sure to check out the education program at the upcoming Annual Meeting & Exposition. I hope you’ll join us from March 20–23 at the Gaylord National Resort & Convention Center in National Harbor, MD, just minutes from Washington, DC.
None of us can tell what the future will hold, but together, with a strong voice, collaboration, and active engagement, we can move pharmacy forward. With challenges come opportunities, and I look forward to working with each of you to support, defend, and advance the profession we love and the patients we serve.