On Capitol Hill, Congress reintroduced bipartisan legislation to protect critical federal funding for pharmacy and nursing residency programs. The Rebuild America’s Health Care Schools Act of 2025 (H.R. 1708), introduced by Rep. Darin LaHood and cosponsored by Reps. Michelle Fischbach and Angie Craig, would clarify the requirements that hospitals and health systems must meet to receive Medicare reimbursement for operating health care residency programs, including pharmacy postgraduate year one (PGY1) programs.

Introduction of this important legislation follows an effort in 2024 led by Sen. Amy Klobuchar in which 1300 ACCP members and supporters mobilized in support of Senate action to protect passthrough funding for PGY1 residency programs. Thank you for this show of support!

Background

Since 2019, CMS has implemented changes to its auditing procedures for clinical pharmacy residency programs without updating its regulations or providing guidance on how residency programs can stay in compliance with these auditing procedures.

Medicare passthrough funding for PGY1 residency programs is critical to ensuring the sustainability of the clinical pharmacy profession. However, under these burdensome Medicare auditing procedures, many PGY1 residency programs have been stripped of funding.

Call to Action

We are calling on ACCP members to write to Congress to urge support for this issue. ACCP has created a preformatted email template that allows you to automatically send a letter to your US senators and representative, according to your home address. This streamlined process ensures that it will take less than 2 minutes for you to make a meaningful impact by expressing your views on this important issue.

ACCP Government and Professional Affairs Update: Assessing ACCP’s Advocacy Strategy in 2025

Donald J. Trump was sworn in as the 47th president of the United States on January 20, claiming an “unprecedented and powerful mandate” to dramatically overhaul the apparatus of the federal government. With Republican majorities in the House and Senate and a conservative-leaning Supreme Court, the new administration is in an advantageous position to advance its policy agenda.

With a series of Executive Orders, the Trump administration initiated a new era of “policy unknowns” characterized by a lack of clearly communicated guidelines and an absence of predictable process. Acknowledging this rapidly evolving regulatory environment, ACCP is working to maintain its strategic, evidence-driven approach to advocacy while remaining vigilant and responsive in support of regulatory structures and conventions that delineate and facilitate the clinical practice of its members.

Capitol Hill Strategy

Both independently and as part of multi-organizational coalitions, ACCP has been active on Capitol Hill and is currently holding meetings with some of the leading offices in the Senate Finance Committee, House Energy and Commerce Committee, and House Ways and Means Committee. In particular, ACCP has had productive conversations with members of the GOP Doctors Caucus—composed of medical providers in Congress who develop patient-centered, patient-driven health care reforms focused on quality, access, affordability, portability, and choice.

ACCP Statement on Senate Hearing—HHS Secretary Nomination of Robert F. Kennedy Jr

ACCP submitted a statement to the Senate Finance Committee related to the nomination of Robert F. Kennedy Jr to serve as secretary of the Department of Health and Human Services. Click here to read the statement. After the Senate confirmation, ACCP submitted this letter to Secretary Kennedy.

ACCP Statement to Congress: Overcoming Barriers to Accessing Medications for Opioid Use Disorder

ACCP submitted a letter to Reps. Paul Tonko (D-NY) and Michael Turner (R-OH) in response to a request for information issued by their offices calling for input from stakeholders on addressing barriers to accessing medications for opioid use disorder. Click here to read the statement.

ACCP’s Priorities for the 119th Congress

ACCP’s top advocacy priority on Capitol Hill is to establish Medicare coverage and payment for comprehensive clinical pharmacy services that optimize medication use for patients. Beyond this vital initiative, ACCP will work with its pharmacy colleagues and other key health care stakeholders—including physician organizations—to advance the following legislative efforts:

• Protecting PGY1 Residency Funding
• Substance Use Prevention and Pharmacy Oriented Recovery Treatment Prescription Act (SUPPORT Rx Act)
• Advancing Medicare Coverage for Pharmacogenetic Consultations

ACCP-PAC Advocacy Update: Opportunities for Clinical Pharmacy in the 119th Congress

ACCP-PAC is the political voice of the clinical pharmacy profession. It is the only federal political action committee dedicated specifically to advancing the practice of clinical pharmacists and the care of their patients. As the 119th Congress gets underway on Capitol Hill, ACCP-PAC has been active in its bipartisan support for members of Congress who have demonstrated leadership on issues important to ACCP members, such as Medicare funding for pharmacy residencies.

Through your support for ACCP-PAC, the College can attend fundraising events that provide a unique setting in which to educate representatives and senators about the essential work of clinical pharmacists in improving medication outcomes on behalf of patients.

ACCP-PAC recently attended an event hosted by Rep. Buddy Carter (R-GA), who is one of just 2 pharmacists currently serving in the US Congress.

About Representative Carter

Representative Carter is a pharmacist currently serving as the representative for Georgia’s First Congressional District. The district is based in Savannah and includes most of the state’s coastal southern area. Representative Carter was first elected to Congress in 2015 after serving the people of Georgia as a state representative (2005-2009) and state senator (2009-2014).

Representative Carter is a well-established leader on health care issues in Congress and will serve as chair of the House Energy and Commerce Subcommittee on Health for the 119th Congress. In this powerful role, Representative Carter’s committee will hold jurisdiction over key provisions in the Medicare program.

In a statement, Rep. Carter highlighted his health care background:

As a pharmacist for more than 40 years, I am thrilled to sit atop the Health Subcommittee for the 119th Congress…. The goal of this subcommittee is as straightforward as it is consequential: help Americans live healthier and longer lives. We will work towards this goal, in lockstep with President Trump, to tackle our nation’s chronic disease epidemic, increase price transparency, incentivize competition, combat harmful health care consolidation, fight the scourge of fentanyl, and build a health care system that puts patients before profits. Through transparency, competition, and innovation, we will Make America Healthy Again.

 About ACCP-PAC

ACCP’s Political Action Committee (PAC) allows the College to participate in political campaign activities that strengthen its relationships with key policymakers on Capitol Hill. Providing financial support to influential leaders helps raise the profile of clinical pharmacy and demonstrates ACCP’s ideological commitment to its core mission.

To maximize its impact, the College must be strategic in targeting its limited resources on the health policy leaders best placed to advance its agenda. Here’s how ACCP’s leaders decide who should receive financial support.

Consistent with all of ACCP’s initiatives, ACCP-PAC is member driven and is managed by a Governing Council that is responsible for decisions related to how PAC money is spent.

• ACCP-PAC is nonpartisan—committed to working with health policy leaders across all political parties and ideologies.
• ACCP-PAC supports candidates on the basis of their alignment with ACCP’s mission to advance the profession and improve human health through research, training, and education.
• ACCP-PAC strategically targets members of Congress who sit on committees with jurisdiction over health care. In the Senate, ACCP-PAC primarily supports members on the Finance Committee and the Health, Education, Labor and Pensions (HELP) Committee. In the House, ACCP-PAC focuses on those who sit on the Ways and Means Committee and the Energy and Commerce Committee.
• ACCP-PAC is committed to transparency—all contributions are reported to the Federal Election Commission, and the information is available to the public.

It is vital that ACCP provide support to its friends in Congress so that these leaders remain in Washington to advance policies that meaningfully address the health care issues the nation currently faces.

PAC contributions are a constitutionally protected part of the US political system under the First Amendment’s guarantee of free speech. ACCP-PAC is the only means through which the College can provide financial support for candidates for Congress. With its 16,000 ACCP members, ACCP is in a position to become one of the most prominent pharmacy PACs in Washington. To do this, the College needs the widespread support of its members. All ACCP members should consider contributing at least $25 to ACCP-PAC. CLICK HERE to support your PAC today!

Congratulations to the Winners of the 2024 ACCP-PAC PRN Challenge!

In conjunction with the 2024 ACCP Annual Meeting in Phoenix, Arizona, ACCP-PAC organized the annual Political Action Committee (PAC) PRN Challenge to determine which PRNs could generate the greatest PAC support.

Throughout the challenge, PRN members who made a PAC contribution online could designate a PRN to receive credit for their contribution. The challenge recognized 2 winners:

• The Community-Based PRN won the contest for the total dollars raised!
• The Perioperative Care PRN won the contest for the greatest percentage of PRN members who contributed!

The winning PRNs will receive coveted preferential time slots for their business meetings at the 2025 ACCP Annual Meeting. Thank you to everyone who participated in ACCP’s advocacy activities in 2024.

Currently Accepting Applications: 2025-2026 Congressional Healthcare Policy Fellow

Now approaching its 20th year, this Washington, D.C.–based program, the only one of its kind in the nation, offers a unique opportunity for a pharmacist to serve as a staff member in the US Congress, with orientation managed by ACCP and ASHP Government Affairs offices.

2024-2025 Congressional Healthcare Policy Fellow

Mikayla Harris, Pharm.D., is currently serving in the office of Sen. Lisa Murkowski as the 2024-2025 American College of Clinical Pharmacy-American Society of Health-System Pharmacists-Virginia Commonwealth University Congressional Healthcare Policy Fellow.

About the Fellow Program

This 14-month fellow program is a joint initiative led by the Government Affairs teams at ACCP and the American Society of Health-System Pharmacists (ASHP) and the faculty at Virginia Commonwealth University (VCU) School of Pharmacy. It provides active mentorship and hands on-experience within the US Congress and offers fellows the opportunity to develop skills in issue prioritization, policy, legislation evaluation, research, writing, and advocacy.

During their congressional placement, Fellows are typically responsible for researching and writing briefs on health care issues, assisting with policy analyses, and drafting memoranda, floor speeches, and questions for panelists at congressional hearings, as well as planning, organizing, and contributing to the senator’s or representative’s office policy and management issues for the year.

Alumni Fellows

After serving in the program, past fellows have gone on to engage in a variety of important roles in health care policy and government:

• Amanda Ferguson, Pharm.D., went on to serve as Health Legislative Assistant in the office of US Sen. Tom Carper (D-DE).
• Tatiana Bujnoch, Pharm.D., MS, BCPS, currently serves as Health Equity and Policy Associate at Morgan Health.
• Rita (Habib) Livadas, Pharm.D., currently serves as Director, Global Public Health, Life Sciences at Becton, Dickinson and Co.

Applications for the 2025-2026 Pharmacy Healthcare Policy Fellow Program

Interested candidates should visit the pharmacy Congressional Healthcare Policy Fellow program website for more information and instructions on submitting an application. For more information, click here.