Monday, October 19, 2026 from 9:15 a.m. to 10:45 a.m. MDT at Salt Palace Convention Center - Room 151 D-G
Available for 1.50 hours of CPE creditActivity Number: 0217-0000-26-197-L04-PActivity Type: A Knowledge-Based ActivityThis session will explore how pharmacists can identify and address barriers to medication access and healthcare resources through an inclusive care lens. Using patient case scenarios from community pharmacy practice, emergency medicine, and pediatrics, panelists will examine real-world challenges that limit patients’ ability to obtain, afford, and appropriately use prescribed therapies. Cases will highlight barriers such as insurance restrictions, prior authorization requirements, cost-sharing burdens, transportation limitations, language access challenges, health literacy concerns, digital access gaps, stigma, and fragmented care systems. Panelists will also discuss how cultural humility, inclusive communication, and system-level advocacy can improve access to care for diverse patient populations.
Learning Objectives1.Define the role of inclusive care principles in promoting equitable medication and healthcare access.
2. Discuss structural, financial, cultural, and system-level barriers that impact medication access across diverse patient populations and practice settings.
3. Identify pharmacist-led strategies to improve access to medications and supportive healthcare resources,including navigation of insurance processes, patient assistance programs, community partnerships, and interdisciplinary collaboration.
4. Apply best practices in inclusive care to complex patient cases in order to advocate for inclusive, accessible, and patient-centered care.
 | | Moderator: | Sally Arif, Pharm.D., BCCP | | Professor of Pharmacy Practice
Midwestern University College of Pharmacy-Downers Grove
Cardiology Clinical Pharmacist
Rush University Medical Center
Affiliated Faculty
Center for Community Health Equity
Chicago, Illinois | | View Biography |
|
 | | Speaker: | Faria Chaudhry, Pharm.D., BCACP, BCPS | | Clinical Assistant Professor of Pharmacy Practice
Purdue University College of Pharmacy
Indianapolis, Indiana | | View Biography |
|
 | | Speaker: | Christina Cox, Pharm.D., FCCP, BCPPS, BCPS | | Assistant Professor-Pediatrics, South Carolina College of Pharmacy, Columbia, South Carolina | | View Biography |
|
 | | Speaker: | Kevin J. Mercer, Pharm.D., MPH, FCCM, BCCCP, BCEMP, BCPS, CPH | | Assistant Professor of Practice | The University of Texas at Austin College of Pharmacy
Science & Medicine Advisor | American Heart Association
Emergency Medicine Pharmacist | HCA Houston Healthcare
Research Coordinator | Southeast Texas Poison Center | | View Biography |
|