2019 was another exciting and productive year for ACCP’s Government and Professional Affairs team based in Washington, D.C. Here are just a few highlights.

ACCP DC-Area Chapter Sixth Annual Capitol Hill Advocacy Day

Over 30 ACCP members joined ACCP’s Government and Professional Affairs team for the Sixth Annual DC-CCP Capitol Hill Advocacy Day. The group was led by Lisa Peters, Pharm.D., clinical specialist pharmacist at MedStar Washington Hospital Center, and included several student pharmacists from the Bernard J. Dunn School of Pharmacy - Shenandoah University.

The chapter’s lobbying visits focused on ACCP’s efforts to integrate coverage for comprehensive medication management (CMM) services delivered by qualified clinical pharmacists as part of the overall evolution of Medicare payment policy. In addition, with Congress focused on developing policy solutions to address the opioid crisis, chapter members took the opportunity to urge the full integration of clinical pharmacists into patient-centered health care teams to help ensure the safe, rational prescribing and use of opioids.

Any ACCP chapter or individual member interested in visiting Washington to lobby on Capitol Hill should contact ACCP’s Washington office, where staff can help facilitate and support their advocacy efforts.

ACCP Hosts Successful Patient-Centered Team-Based Practice Forum in St. Louis

In April 2019, ACCP’s Patient-Centered Team-Based Practice Forum offered a series of hands-on, interactive programs to help practitioners develop and enhance their delivery of comprehensive medication management (CMM). Building on the success of this one-of-a-kind learning opportunity for clinical pharmacists seeking to implement CMM services, ACCP will offer this year’s Clinical Practice Forum in conjunction with the 2020 Spring Forum on April 25–26 in St. Louis, Missouri. Click here to register today!

Kyle G. Robb, 2019–2020 ACCP/ASHP//VCU Congressional Healthcare Policy Fellow

Launched in 2006, this unique fellow program provides the opportunity for a qualified pharmacist to spend 1 year placed within a congressional office or on a congressional committee on Capitol Hill and the government affairs offices of ACCP and ASHP. Pharmacists who participate in the program have the opportunity to gain real-world insight into health care policy analysis and development via immersion in the congressional environment. Fellows are actively mentored in legislative evaluation, policy development, research, and writing while integrating practical experience with theory.

The 2019–2020 fellow, Kyle G. Robb, Pharm.D., currently holds the position of health policy advisor for the minority staff on the Senate Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions (HELP) Committee. Visit the Pharmacy Healthcare Policy Fellow website for more information on the program and instructions on submitting an application.

ACCP Serves as Founding Board Member to Launch Groundbreaking GTMRx Institute

In April 2019, ACCP joined a group of founding board members – including distinguished primary care physicians and health care leaders; J&J Health Care Services; Medecision, a subsidiary of Health Care Service Corporation; and Quest Diagnostics – to launch the Get the Medications Right™ (GTMRx) Institute.

GTMRx is dedicated to identifying methods that ensure the effective and appropriate use of medications through team-based, patient-centered care models that recognize appropriately skilled clinical pharmacists as medication experts who work in collaborative practice with physicians and other providers.

• ACCP members are eligible to register as signing members of GTMRx. To receive updates and access to exclusive programming, click here.

ACCP President Suzanne Amato Nesbit Published in the Washington Post

In a Washington Post “letter to the editor,” Suzanne Amato Nesbit, Pharm.D., FCCP, BCPS, CPE, addressed the role of clinical pharmacists; patient-centered, team-based care; and comprehensive medication management in fighting the nationwide opioid epidemic. Click here to read the letter in full.

ACCP’s D.C. Office Welcomes Marcia L. Buck, Director, Clinical Practice Advancement

ACCP’s Washington, D.C., team welcomed Past President (2016–2017) Marcia L. Buck, Pharm.D., FCCP, FPPAG, BCPPS, as director, Clinical Practice Advancement. Buck joined the College from the University of Virginia (UVA) Children’s Hospital, where she was a pediatric clinical pharmacy specialist and clinical coordinator in the Department of Pharmacy Services. She has held appointments as professor in the UVA School of Medicine and clinical professor at the VCU School of Pharmacy. She also oversaw the UVA Children’s Hospital PGY2 residency program as residency program director and regularly precepted students and residents as a neonatal intensive care clinician.

ACCP-PAC Launches the PAC Captains Program at the 2019 ACCP Annual Meeting

At the 2019 ACCP Annual Meeting in New York City, ACCP-PAC hosted an invitation-only breakfast to formally launch the ACCP-PAC Captains Program, aimed at enhancing PRN engagement in ACCP’s Political Action Committee (PAC) and ultimately increasing the College’s PAC fundraising through the leadership of PRN PAC captains.

ACCP-PAC is a vital asset in ACCP’s ongoing initiative to integrate coverage for CMM services as part of value-based care models within Medicare and across other delivery systems. The PAC is the only means by which ACCP can make campaign contributions to help elect members of Congress who share this vision of a team-based, patient-centered, quality-focused approach to health care and who recognize the need to get the medications right as part of this delivery system through coverage for CMM.

There’s still time to contribute to ACCP-PAC before the College files its year-end report to the Federal Election Commission, publicly declaring its annual fundraising total. You can demonstrate your support for ACCP advocacy initiatives and help build momentum for the PAC going into 2020. Click here to make a contribution today!

ACCP Sponsors Table at PCC Barbara Starfield Awards Dinners – Recognizing Excellence in Advancing Team-Based, Patient-Focused Care

The Primary Care Collaborative (PCC), considered by many the foundation of the patient-centered medical home (PCMH) movement, includes key stakeholders such as the American College of Physicians, the American Association of Nurse Practitioners, and the Geisinger Health Plan and Blue Cross and Blue Shield Association, all of which, through their endorsement of the PCC CMM Resource Guide, are known in Washington as CMM advocates.

ACCP is proud to participate at a leadership level in this innovative organization. Last year, the College facilitated the successful PCPCC webinar Optimizing Value and Patient Outcomes Through Comprehensive Medication Management. ACCP also provides important financial support for PCC and, for several years, has sponsored a table at the prestigious Barbara Starfield Awards Dinner held at the Capital Hilton in downtown Washington, D.C., which recognizes excellence in advancing the medical home and person-focused care.