Petition to Gain Provider Status for Pharmacists

As you may know, Pharmacists are not currently recognized as healthcare providers by CMS. Therefore we cannot bill directly for our services.  With the impending implementation of Collaborative Practice Regulations in New Jersey, it becomes critical for pharmacists to be able to bill directly for services provided under a collaborative agreement.

Pharmacist Sandra Leal (Arizona) started a petition to have pharmacists recognized as providers by CMS.

This petition is not limited to a small group of pharmacists or to any specific healthcare setting. It is designed to seek broad recognition of pharmacist capabilities and impact on the health of patients.

Recognize Pharmacists as Health Care Professionals Petition has over 5,000 signatures!     PLEASE SIGN TODAY

Click the following link (or copy and paste in your browser):
http://www.change.org/petitions/the-president-of-the-united-states-recognize-pharmacists-as-health-care-providers

Despite overwhelming evidence of the positive impact pharmacists can have on patient health, pharmacists are not recognized as healthcare providers under the Social Security Act and, therefore, cannot be paid by Medicare for therapy management and patient consultation services. The Social Security Act does recognize other healthcare professionals such as dieticians, nurse practitioners, physician assistants, nurse midwives, and clinical social workers.

By changing the compensation structure allowed under Medicare, we can ensure that patients have access to the medication expertise of pharmacists. Studies have shown that when a pharmacist is directly involved in patient care, patients have fewer adverse drug reactions, experience improved outcomes, and healthcare costs are reduced.

The perils of adverse effects from taking multiple medications affect all age groups. According to a recent survey, just over half of all Americans take at least 2 medications each day and nearly one-third take 4 or more medications each day. For the Medicare population, medication use is even higher — nearly half of Americans aged 65 and older take at least 4 medications each day.