The American Pharmacists Association (APhA) issued the following statement today after the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) finalized the rule for the legal importation of drugs from Canada.

We want to make this clear right off the bat: APhA is steadfastly opposed to sexism, racism, discrimination, harassment, and intimidation – implicit or explicit – and we are committed to combatting behaviors that undermine any member of our profession.

The American Pharmacists Association (APhA) announced today that it has named Antonio Ciaccia, Chief Strategy Officer of 3 Axis Advisors, as APhA’s Senior Advisor for Disruptive Innovation and Practice Transformation. This addition will supercharge the association’s efforts to disrupt our broken payment models and drive the profession of pharmacy forward. Antonio begins his duties immediately.

The American Pharmacists Association (APhA) announced today that it has named Rafael Saenz, PharmD, MS, FASHP, as Chief of Staff of the association. Dr. Saenz will have oversight for membership and member relations, health systems and international strategy, meetings and expositions, publications and periodicals, communications and marketing, and creative services.

The U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) today authorized pharmacists and pharmacist interns to order and administer COVID-19 vaccines that have been approved or licensed by the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) to all individuals age 3 or older. Pharmacist interns must do so while acting under the supervision of qualified pharmacist.

The American Pharmacists Association and 12 other pharmacy organizations today told a special committee of the National Academies of Science, Engineering and Medicine (NASEM) that pharmacists should be given tier 1 priority status in the allocation and distribution of COVID-19 vaccine(s).

All pharmacists should be in the first tier of providers for receiving the COVID-19 vaccine to ensure that pharmacists are able to continue providing critical care to their patients, said Scott J. Knoer, MS, PharmD, FASHP, in testimony this week to a committee of the National Academies of Science, Engineering and Medicine.

There are no greater public health priorities today than defeating the COVID-19 pandemic and protecting our nation from other vaccine-preventable diseases like the seasonal flu. We need all hands on deck to improve Americans’ access to life-saving vaccines during these difficult times.

The American Pharmacists Association applauds today’s announcement by the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, which authorizes licensed pharmacists to provide all vaccines recommended by the CDC’s Advisory Committee on Immunization Practices (ACIP), and approved or licensed by the FDA, to all children ages 3 to 18 during the COVID-19 pandemic, regardless of state laws and regulations to the contrary.

The American Pharmacists Association (APhA) is deeply concerned about anecdotal reports of disruptions in the US Postal Service delivery of medications to our members’ patients, including our nation’s veterans. While we are working to independently determine the full extent of these reported interruptions, it is crucial to note that missing medication doses can have a significant impact on a patient’s health.