Congress Must Pass Legislation to Ensure Senior Access to Essential Pharmacist Services
The Future of Pharmacy Care Coalition urges the 119th Congress to advance the Ensuring Community Access to Pharmacist Services Act (ECAPS) to protect seniors and others in Medicare from the threat of common infectious diseases such as the flu and RSV.
PHARMACISTS ARE THE MOST ACCESSIBLE HEALTH CARE PROVIDER
Nine in 10 Americans live within five miles of a pharmacy, and patients visit their community pharmacist twice as frequently as they visit primary care physicians.
PHARMACISTS SAVE LIVES & BILLIONS IN HEALTH CARE COSTS
By conservative estimates, the 350 million clinical interventions provided by pharmacists to approximately 150 million Americans for common respiratory conditions averted over 1 million deaths, 8 million hospitalizations, and $450 billion in health care costs.
PHARMACISTS HELP KEEP RURAL COMMUNITIES HEALTHY
More than half pharmacists (55%) work in a community based setting and 77% of community pharmacies serve population areas of 50,000 or fewer.
ECAPS HAS BROAD SUPPORT ACROSS COMMUNITIES
Over 170 organizations, including rural and senior advocacy groups, physician and provider groups, patient advocacy organizations, health systems and many others support bipartisan federal legislation that provides Medicare reimbursement for essential pharmacist services.