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Ask US Senators to Support S.511 |
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Written by Clay Cooper
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Wednesday, 04 March 2009 18:25 |
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ABOUT THE BILL: Senators John Tester (D-MT) and Sam Brownback (R-KS) introduced S. 511,the Access to Durable Medical Equipment Act of 2009, a bill that adds pharmacists to a list of 17 medical professionals exempted from new accreditation requirements for Medicare Part B Durable Medical Equipment, Prosthetics, Orthotics and Supplies (DMEPOS).
BACKGROUND: Community pharmacists are the only licensed health care professionals supplying DMEPOS who must meet the new accreditation requirements of Medicare Part B as finalized by CMS last fall. As does its U.S. House companion bill, H.R. 616, S. 511 contains language exempting pharmacists from what would be a time-consuming, expensive, unnecessary and redundant rule, finalized by CMS last fall. Under this bill, pharmacists would join the 17 other health care professionals, such as physicians, nurses and opticians, who already must meet certain quality standards and are conditionally exempted by CMS. CMS provides no valid reason why state-licensed pharmacists should not also receive this exemption.
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2009 APhA-ASP Proposed Resolutions |
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Written by Clay Cooper
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Wednesday, 04 March 2009 18:13 |
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2009.1 – Appropriate Labeling for Acetaminophen-Containing Products APhA-ASP recommends use of the term “acetaminophen” rather than the abbreviation “APAP” on all labels and associated packaging for acetaminophen-containing prescription medications in order to reduce the likelihood of acute and chronic overdoses. 2009.2 – Supplemental Print and Electronic Health Information APhA-ASP encourages pharmacists and student pharmacists to provide guidance to patients seeking publicly available sources of supplemental health information, including but not limited to, online resources and printed publications. 2009.3 – Meeting Preceptor Demands of Experiential Education APhA-ASP encourages pharmacy education stakeholders (e.g., professional pharmacy organizations, local and national accrediting bodies, schools and colleges of pharmacy) to develop and implement programming that encourages and prepares student pharmacists to become preceptors upon graduation.
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