Student pharmacists advocate for provider status on Capitol Hill

The Pharmacy and Medically Underserved Areas Enhancement Act (H.R. 592/S. 109) is gaining more traction due to the efforts of student pharmacists who attended APhA Academy of Student Pharmacists’ (APhA-ASP) Summer Leadership Institute (SLI).

“By sharing our ‘pharmacists provide care’ stories with the congressmen, we opened their eyes further to the amazing things that pharmacists are doing and what we could do for their constituents if provider status became law,” said Kalyn Davis, a SLI attendee and student pharmacist at Samford University.

For 20 years, APhA-ASP has been hosting SLI, a 3-day event set in Washington, DC, for student pharmacists to develop and enhance their leadership and professional skills.

The Capitol Hill visit on July 13 started with Rep. Raul Ruiz (D-CA), Rep. Markwayne Mullin (R-OK), and Rep. Buddy Carter (R-GA), who serve on the House Committee on Energy and Commerce, giving talks at SLI’s continental breakfast. Then, Davis and 214 other SLI attendees visited more than 140 Capitol Hill offices to discuss topics like H.R. 592, drug pricing, and the opioid crisis. 

Faced with projections of physician shortages, an increasing number of Medicare recipients, and a rise in chronic conditions, H.R. 592 was introduced in January 2017. As of now, the bill has 282 House cosponsors and 53 Senate cosponsors. If passed, Medicare patients in underserved areas would gain access to pharmacist-provided services, and pharmacists would be reimbursed under Medicare Part B. 

In total, 240 student pharmacists attended SLI, according to Mary-Ryan Douglass, associate director of APhA’s Grassroots Advocacy and Political Action Committee (PAC). Activities included leadership and education workshops, networking with APhA and APhA-ASP leaders, and a presentation by Rob Culberson, MSW, CSP, CPAE, the keynote speaker.

“SLI brings together our generation’s student leaders who value enhancing our training, to better serve our patients, beyond just what we learn from textbooks…[It’s] a great reminder as to why many of us decided to serve within our leadership roles and what we can continue to do to impact other students’ lives and our patients’ lives,” explained SLI attendee and St. Louis College of Pharmacy student Sydney Tu.

For more information, visit the SLI website.