Congressional Pharmacy Fly-In

You could feel the electricity in the air at this year's Congressional Pharmacy Fly-In, April-30-May 1. Members at all stages of their careers and in roles across the world of independent pharmacy told us that during their visits to Capitol Hill, members of Congress and staff were deeply engaged on the subject of PBM reform, asked informed questions, and seemed optimistic about its prospects.

"Egregious PBM practices have led to the closure of thousands of community pharmacies just over the past few years, creating pharmacy deserts and pharmacy abandonment throughout the country and greatly limiting patient access to care," said Jeff Harrell, PharmD, the 2024-2025 NCPA president. "In my home state of Washington, we lost 83 pharmacies in the second half of 2023 alone. Patients and pharmacies cannot keep waiting for these commonsense reforms, which are supported by the vast majority of members of Congress across the political spectrum. Add to that these policies save taxpayers billions of dollars, and passage should be a no-brainer. We need them to put the politics aside and get this done ASAP."

We'll have much more to say in the June issue of America's Pharmacist^® magazine. In the meantime, mark your calendars for this year's Annual Convention in New Orleans, Oct. 18-21; and our 2026 fly-in, April 15-16.