News from American Pharmacies, a Co-Op Owned by Independent Pharmacies.

A Co-Op Owned by
Independent Pharmacies

Working with pharmacy wholesalers, American Pharmacies saves our members real money.

April 1, 2008

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Much more than a buying co-op!

American Pharmacies is a for-profit, member-owned pharmacy buying group operating

in Texas, Oklahoma & Louisiana, with a strong advocacy arm in Texas & Washington, D.C.

Member, National Community Pharmacists Association

Beck's Corner

Challenging TSBP rules, again!

Once again, new rules proposed by the Texas State Board of Pharmacy are onerous for independent community pharmacy.

Amazingly, they took our recommendation from the last go-round over new rules to allow the pharmacist to establish his own policies and procedures manual for his store. However, they retained onerous rules regulating the amount of time a pharmacist may be out of the prescription processing area, whether on-site or out of the building. Additionally, the rules restrict work by pharmacy techs while the pharmacist is out of the building.

The oddest part of the rules is a pharmacy tech can continue working while the pharmacy is onsite but in another part of the store, but has to stop work if the pharmacist goes to lunch at the sandwich shop next door.

Bottom line, every prescription has to be approved by the pharmacist before it leaves the store! Any rules beyond this are overkill to the point they can kill an independent community pharmacist's business.

The physical security guidelines have the potential to impose undue financial burden on small business independent pharmacy owners and diminish the professional stature of Texas pharmacists. Also, there is the question of what to do with existing pharmacies purchased by a new owner? Will the rules mandate retrofitting, or will the grandfather clause apply?

We have submitted our concerns to TSBP and requested they pull the pertinent amendments, rewrite them, or seek an attorney general opinion, especially as regards the issue of "direct supervision."

Stay tuned!

Welcome new APRx members!

Leah Allen, RPh
Wilson Drug, Hearne

Billy Arndt, RPh
Tom Goodrich, RPh
Sanitarium Drug, Marlin

Earl Bandy, RPh
J & J Pharmacy, Cleburne

Gary Daley, RPh
Parkway Pharmacy, Plano
Big State Drug, Irving
Brown's Pharmacy, Irving
Randol Mill Pharmacy, Arlington
Brown's Healthcare Pharmacy, Irving
Save Mart Pharmacy, Quinlan
Randol Mill Pharmacy, Arlington

James Dykes, RPh
Cullen Care Pharmacy, Houston

Ernesto Garza-Gongora, RPh
Stone Oak Pharmacy, San Antonio

Fidel Huerta Jr., RPh
Health Professionals, San Antonio

Ray Johnson, RPh
Carol Johnson, RPh
The Pill Box, Dumas

David Mitchell, RPh
Bay Pharmacy, Horseshoe Bay

Adaeze Moghalu, RPh
Lord & A Pharmacy, Dallas

Cleburne Murdoch, RPh
Clinic Pharmacy, Rotan

Billy Jack Peace, RPh
Peace Pharmacy, Canton

Michael Pemberton, RPh
Louis Morgan Drugs #1, Longview

Lelynda Ratliff, RPh
Mountain Valley Pharmacy, Canyon Lake

Jim Riggins, RPh
Jim's Pharmacy, Hillsboro

Nora Solis, RPh
St. Rose Pharmacy, Mission

Rita Williamson, RPh
Broadway Drug Store, Galveston

If you want information on joining the 500 American Pharmacies buying co-op members, contact Business Development Manager Kaye Stroud at kstroud@aprx.org or call 877-634-5445.

Protect Your Pharmacy Week

Protect Your Pharmacy Week is April 14-18, and pharmacists in all practice settings are encouraged to take steps to protect staff and patients.

New initiatives to fight pharmacy robberies and other crimes aimed at stealing controlled substances were announced today by the National Community Pharmacists Association. This is a direct outgrowth of a resolution on pharmacy crime passed by the House of Delegates last year.

NCPA is reissuing a poster distributed to members in the 1980s warning that the robbery or burglary of a pharmacy was a federal offense, punishable by up to 20 years in prison.

"We fought long and hard in Congress for more than a decade to secure enactment of the Pharmacist Protection Act," said NCPA EVP and CEO Bruce Roberts, RPh. "Now, it's true that most pharmacy crimes still are investigated and prosecuted locally, but the law-and the poster-should have made some potential perps think twice."

Today NCPA, FBI LEEDA (Law Enforcement Executive Development Association), and Purdue Pharma will be announcing a renewed partnership to combat pharmacy crime by improving pharmacy safety and security.

NCPA members exclusively are being mailed a free "Protect Your Pharmacy Now" toolkit with resources and product discounts to help them improve their security. The kit includes a window poster, decal, and a free RxPATROL® training DVD on pharmacy crime. NCPA members also will receive information on discounts on closed-circuit TV cameras, recorders, and surveillance equipment along with safety and security tips from law enforcement professionals.

The Community Pharmacy Foundation is helping to support the toolkit through an unrestricted grant.

Many of you already are familiar with RxPATROL® (Pattern Analysis Tracking Robberies and Other Losses). It's a collaborative effort NCPA launched in 2003 with Purdue, the National Association of Drug Diversion Investigators, and the Pharmaceutical Security Institute to collect, collate, analyze, and disseminate pharmacy crime information to pharmacists, loss prevention professionals, and law enforcement agencies.

Other partners now include Crime Stoppers, the Healthcare Distribution Management Association, Pharmacists Mutual, and Smith Drug Company.