APhA Policy Manual

APhA, as well as state and local pharmacy organizations, shall continue to establish liaisons with the growing number of consumer groups, attend their meetings, and seek to be included on their programs.

APhA supports continuing collaboration with other health care and professional organizations.

1. APhA opposes policies, practices, and statements by the American Medical Association (AMA) and other professional organizations that impede interprofessional care, patient access to pharmacist-provided care, and health equity.
2. APhA calls on the American Medical Association (AMA) to rescind its policies opposing expanded scopes of practice for pharmacists.
3. APhA adamantly supports the continuation and expansion of collaborative patient care models among pharmacists, physicians, and other healthcare professionals to improve patient access to care, health equity, and health outcomes.

1. APhA supports increased interaction with The Joint Commission regarding accreditation standards and procedures pertaining to pharmacy and therapeutics.
2. APhA supports pharmacy representation on appropriate The Joint Commission professional and technical advisory committees.

1. APhA encourages all stakeholders to develop and adopt evidence-based approaches to educate the public and all health care professionals to reduce the stigma associated with mental health diagnoses.
2. APhA supports the increased utilization of pharmacists and student pharmacists with appropriate training to actively participate in the care of patients with mental health conditions as members of interprofessional health care teams in all practice settings.
3. APhA supports the expansion of mental health education and training in the curriculum of all schools and colleges of pharmacy, postgraduate training, and within continuing professional development programs.
4. APhA supports the development of education and resources to address health care professional resiliency and burnout.

1. APhA supports the role of pharmacy personnel in antimicrobial stewardship in all practice settings.
2. APhA supports pharmacy personnel working in collaboration with others to lead the development and implementation of antimicrobial stewardship programs and initiatives.
3. APhA supports pharmacists advising prescribers and educating patients on the appropriate use of antimicrobials.

1. APhA supports the establishment of collaborative practice agreements between pharmacists and other health care professionals designed to optimize patient care outcomes.
2. APhA supports the establishment of collaborative practice agreements between one or multiple pharmacists and one or multiple prescribers or entities.
3. APhA supports state laws, regulations, and policies that do not require a referral or a prior provider–patient relationship as a prerequisite to access services provided under a collaborative practice agreement.
4. APhA opposes state laws, regulations, and policies that limit collaborative practice agreements to specific patients.
5. APhA supports state laws, regulations, and policies that allow for pharmacists’ prescriptive authority.
6. APhA supports state collaborative practice laws, regulations, and policies that allow all licensed pharmacists, in all practice settings, to establish collaborative practice agreements with other health care professionals or entities.
7. APhA shall promote the establishment and dissemination of guidelines and information to pharmacists and other health care professionals to facilitate the development of collaborative practice agreements.

1. APhA asserts that pharmacists should have the authority and support to practice to the full extent of their education, training, and experience in delivering patient care.
2. APhA opposes burdensome legal and regulatory requirements beyond continuing professional development for the provision of patient care services.
3. APhA supports continuing efforts toward establishing a consistent and accurate perception of the contemporary role and practice of pharmacists by the general public, patients, and all persons and institutions engaged in health care policy, administration, payment, and delivery.
4. APhA supports continued collaboration with stakeholders to facilitate adoption of standardized practice acts, appropriate related laws, regulations, and policies that reflect contemporary pharmacy practice.
5. APhA supports the establishment of multistate pharmacist licensure agreements to address the evolving needs of the pharmacy profession and pharmacist-provided patient care.
6. APhA urges the continued development of consensus documents, in collaboration with medical associations and other stakeholders, that recognize and support pharmacists’ roles in patient care as health care providers.
7. APhA urges universal recognition of pharmacists as health care providers and compensation based on the level of patient care provided using standardized and future health care payment models.

1. APhA supports pharmacists leading medication management activities during care transitions to ensure safe and effective medication use.
2. APhA supports the integral role of pharmacists during care transitions for improving quality of patient-centered care and reducing overall costs to the health care system.
3. APhA strongly encourages collaboration and shared accountability among patients, family members, caregivers, pharmacists, and other health care providers during care transitions.
4. APhA supports the development and utilization of standardized processes that facilitate real-time, bidirectional communication of protected health information during care transitions.
5. APhA supports that documentation of health outcomes is an essential component of any care transition program to demonstrate value and ensure continuous quality improvement.
6. APhA supports financially viable payment models that recognize the value of pharmacists’ services, including, but not limited to, those provided during care transitions.
7. APhA strongly urges the development and implementation of multidisciplinary, interprofessional, and team-based training for health care professionals and students to improve the quality and consistency of care transition services.
8. APhA urges the collaboration and partnership of community pharmacies with health care systems, institutions, and other entities involved in care transitions.

APhA opposes any method that provides an inappropriate sharing of compensation between the prescriber and dispenser.

APhA supports efforts to develop guidelines on physician ownership of pharmacies due to the inherent conflict of interest.

The American Pharmacist Association (APhA) encourages collaboration with the American Public Health Association (APHA) and other public health organizations to increase pharmacists’ participation in initiatives designed to meet global, national, regional, state, local, and community health goals.

1. APhA affirms health equity as a core value of the profession of pharmacy and supports policies and practices that advance equitable access to care.
2. APhA commits to prioritizing the elimination of systemic barriers that prevent pharmacy personnel from performing their critical role in ensuring health equity.
3. APhA supports efforts to develop and empower pharmacy personnel as advocates for groups who are or have been marginalized and are facing health inequities.
4. APhA advocates for the inclusion of pharmacy professionals’ expertise in all efforts to ensure individuals and communities have equitable opportunities to attain their full potential for health and well-being.

Because of the broad implications of the pharmacist’s role in public health, the committee recommends that pharmacists and pharmacy associations seek to have the state laws, regulations, and policies amended to require that a pharmacist serve on the state and local boards of health. One part of this effort should be an increased interest on the part of the pharmacist in his local health boards and commissions.

1. APhA supports the integration of social determinants of health screening as a vital component of pharmacy services.
2. APhA urges the integration of social determinants of health education within pharmacy curricula, postgraduate training, and continuing education requirements.
3. APhA supports incentivizing community engaged research, driven by meaningful partnerships and shared decisionmaking with community members.
4. APhA urges pharmacists to create opportunities for community engagement to best meet the needs of the patients they serve.
5. APhA encourages the integration of community health workers in pharmacy practice to provide culturally sensitive care, address health disparities, and promote health equity.

APhA encourages pharmacists’ active participation in health care organizations within their communities to assist in the public health efforts of community health and foster better community understanding of the profession of pharmacy.

1. APhA encourages state legislatures and boards of pharmacy to revise laws, regulations, and policies to support the patient-centered care of people who use non-medically sanctioned psychotropic or psychoactive substances.
2. To reduce the consequences of stigma associated with drug use, APhA supports the expansion of interprofessional harm reduction education in the curriculum of schools and colleges of pharmacy, postgraduate training, and continuing professional development programs.
3. APhA encourages pharmacists to initiate, sustain, and integrate evidence-based harm reduction principles and programs into their practice to optimize the health of people who use non-medically sanctioned psychotropic or psychoactive substances.
4. APhA supports pharmacists’ roles to provide and promote consistent, unrestricted, and immediate access to evidence-based, mortality- and morbidity-reducing interventions to enhance the health of people who inject nonmedically sanctioned psychotropic or psychoactive substances and their communities, including sterile syringes, needles, and other safe injection equipment, syringe disposal, fentanyl test strips, immunizations, condoms, wound care supplies, pre- and post-exposure prophylaxis medications for human immunodeficiency virus (HIV), point-of-care testing for HIV and hepatitis C virus (HCV), opioid reversal agents, and medications for opioid use disorder.
5. APhA urges pharmacists to refer people who use nonmedically sanctioned psychotropic or psychoactive substances to specialists in mental health, infectious diseases, and substance use disorder treatment; to housing, vocational, harm reduction, and recovery support services; and to safe consumption facilities and syringe service programs.

1. APhA supports referrals of patients to pharmacists, among pharmacists, or between pharmacists and other health care providers to promote optimal patient outcomes.
2. APhA supports referrals to and by pharmacists that ensure timely patient access to quality services and promote patient freedom of choice.
3. APhA advocates for pharmacists’ engagement in referral systems that are aligned with those of other health care providers and facilitate collaboration and information sharing to ensure continuity of care.
4. APhA supports attribution and equitable payment to pharmacists providing patient care services as a result of a referral.
5. APhA promotes the pharmacist’s professional responsibility to uphold ethical and legal standards of care in referral practices.
6. APhA reaffirms its support of development, adoption, and use of policies and procedures by pharmacists to manage potential conflicts of interest in practice, including in referral systems.

1. APhA encourages schools and colleges of pharmacy and pharmacy technician training programs to facilitate educational opportunities for student pharmacists, and student pharmacy technicians in the principles of veterinary pharmacotherapy.
2. APhA encourages the availability of professional development opportunities in the principles of veterinary pharmacotherapy for pharmacists, student pharmacists, and pharmacy technicians.

APhA encourages pharmacists, student pharmacists, and pharmacy technicians to become more knowledgeable about veterinary drugs and their usage.

APhA calls for the adoption, by pharmacy organizations and regulatory and professional entities, of the expanded definition for patient to include human or non-human species.