A letter from Interim CEO Ilisa Bernstein, PharmD, JD, FAPhA, to Dr. Robert Califf, Commissioner of the Food and Drug Administration (FDA), on the importance of pharmacists being allowed to prescribe oral COVID-19 treatments.

Hear from Ilisa BG Bernstein, PharmD, JD, FAPhA, APhA’s new interim executive vice president and CEO, about her background and history with APhA as well as our top strategic priorities, which will propel us to move the profession forward.

You have been front and center during the pandemic, providing vaccines, tests, treatments, and continuity of care. You are providing care in pockets of the country where patients would otherwise be without health care, and you are helping address health equity in the U.S. You and our profession are shining.

We hear you! Your pharmacy workplace is stressed and stretched. You have rapidly growing concerns for patient safety. Still, you are there—every day—to care for your patients despite conditions that seem to be working against you.

As we reach the midpoint of American Pharmacists Month, we must continuously honor the pharmacists who do heroic work every day in the face of incredible pressures. Pharmacy workforce shortages exist in almost every area of the country. Corporations can seem insufficiently responsive to the stresses of pharmacy practice. Patients may aggressively challenge the professional judgment of pharmacists and other pharmacy personnel. A toxic mixture of vaccine misinformation and disinformation fuels distrust. Keeping up-to-date with the rapidly evolving vaccine guidance from government authorities can be difficult. We recognize these problems and are thankful for your invaluable work.