Brian Babin: “I thank Congressman Doug Collins for leading this very Special Order on a topic that is very near and dear to my heart…”

“I thank Congressman Doug Collins for leading this very Special Order on a topic that is very near and dear to my heart, the invaluable role of community pharmacists in our society. As a rural dentist who practiced for 35 years, I can relate to the plight of community pharmacists who must overcome all of the challenges involved in running a small business while serving their patients and serving their customers and doing their job as a medical professional. Just like my small hometown of Woodville, Texas, where I practice, many of the areas in which community pharmacies are located are rural and have underserved, low-income and elderly populations. This can present unique challenges and, oftentimes, results in community pharmacists performing a lot of services, such as face-to-face counseling and planning services for patients' medication regimen at no charge, care that is uncompensated by Medicare and not typically reimbursed by private insurance companies as well. What is even more challenging is the uphill battle that community pharmacists continually face in just getting adequate payment for the lifesaving medications that they dispense on a daily basis and still be able to earn a small profit. Community pharmacists rely on pharmacy benefit managers, or PBMs, who negotiate directly with payors, including private insurance companies, as well as Medicare part D and other government plans, for reimbursement levels for medications.…”