2023 SCPC Summit Recap

DATE: August 21, 2023

In late July, the Senior Care Pharmacy Coalition (SCPC) gathered in Washington, D.C. for our annual Business Partners Summit where we discussed key issues and policies impacting the long-term care (LTC) pharmacy community and the unique role our members play in America’s healthcare system.

The Summit brought together SCPC member companies, LTC pharmacy business partners, healthcare industry analysts and policy experts along with several prominent members of Congress for a broad discussion on the important role LTC pharmacies play in providing quality care for nearly two million seniors and those with disabilities.

The SCPC team wrapped up this year’s Summit with great enthusiasm after welcoming a record number of attendees, networking with peers, and engaging in substantive discussions about key issues impacting the LTC community and ways we can work together to enact meaningful policy reforms to improve access to care.

Our team, members and stakeholders move forward from the Summit with a renewed focus on our core missions: meeting the unique pharmacy needs of those we serve, improving health outcomes through innovative service, and ensuring the best possible environment for LTC pharmacies to operate. To do that, we are focused on four major issues that will guide our ongoing efforts, including:

–Advocating for Meaningful PBM Reform in 2023. Pharmacy benefit managers (PBMs) are driving up the cost of medicines and reducing access to care while attempting to drive community and LTC pharmacies out of business. Learn More.

–Protecting LTC Pharmacies from Drug Price Negotiations. As part of the Inflation Reduction Act (IRA), CMS will soon begin negotiating prices for some of the most expensive prescription drugs, many of which are routinely dispensed by LTC pharmacies serving Medicare Part D patients. Without important reforms to ensure proper reimbursements and to stop PBMs from steering patients to their own affiliated pharmacies, the IRA’s price setting policies will disrupt the market and put LTC pharmacies the unique patient population we serve at significant risk. Learn More.

–Improving Access to Long-Term Care Pharmacy Services at Home. LTC pharmacies are uniquely positioned to provide specialized pharmacy services in a variety of different settings, including home-based care. Learn More.

–Defining and Properly Recognizing LTC Pharmacies at the Federal Level. Current federal regulations impose conflicting and confusing obligations on LTC pharmacies that hamper our ability to provide care to the unique population we serve. Learn More.

Addressing these priority issues with sensible and innovative reforms will have a major impact on the LTC pharmacy community’s ability to effectively serve one of our nation’s most vulnerable patient populations. We look forward to sharing more information on these important topics throughout the remainder of the year.

For now, we thank our members, business partners, analysts and experts for taking part in this year’s SCPC Business Partners Summit. Please check out the photos of the Summit here. We look forward to gathering again in July of 2024.