Local Lawmakers Author Bill To Ensure Vaccine Access at Pharmacies
The federal government expanded access to vaccines at pharmacies during the COVID-19 pandemic. But those expansions are set to expire at the end of this year.
That has some local lawmakers worried.
“Doctors and clinicians continue to make the case that they cannot do this work alone,” said state Rep. Kristin Bahner, DFL-Maple Grove. “They continue to agree that pharmacies are an essential part of filling this gap.”
Bahner, along with state Senators John Hoffman, DFL-Champlin, and Alice Mann, DFL-Edina, hosted a press conference on April 2 promoting a package of bills that would make these vaccine expansions permanent.
The Public Readiness and Emergency Preparedness (PREP) Act gave pharmacists the authority to vaccinate patients age 3 and above using any Food and Drug Administration approved or emergency-use vaccine. The act expires at the end of 2024.
Local lawmakers are proposing the permanent adoption of pandemic-era policies that expanded access to vaccines at pharmacies.
Hoffman said Minnesotans want continued access to vaccination at their pharmacy.
“This service allows for the screening and treatment process to be completed during a single encounter, thereby, that improves access to care — counseling, that’s the key thing — and patient outcomes,” Hoffman said.
Meanwhile, the package of bills would also provide financial assistance for a shrinking group of independent and community pharmacies.
Since 2018, 35 percent of independent pharmacies and 20 percent of chain pharmacies have gone out of business.
According to the legislators, pharmacies are often reimbursed for health care services at a rate lower than other providers such as a clinic.
One of the bills would raise the reimbursement rate for pharmacies to equal other providers.
