Providing quality health care for our beloved family members as they age is one of the most important aspects of being a caregiver. When we think of health care providers, we often immediately think of doctors, nurses, or physical therapists. But one of the most often overlooked providers is one many seniors see more often than any other: their community pharmacist.
Indeed, the pharmacist plays a vital role in the ongoing health of our loved ones in their golden years. They offer advice and instruction on the sometimes multiple and varied medications that seniors become accustomed to taking more of as time passes. Not only that, in many states pharmacists provide life-saving vaccines to senior citizens for diseases like shingles and pneumonia.
At Pharmacy Choice and Access Now (PCAN), we are fighting to ensure that pharmacy access remains available to everyone, including those who are most vulnerable, like our beloved parents, grandparents, and other senior family members. Seniors are among the population most at risk by the lost access to pharmacy care that is resulting from Medicaid reforms being made in several states.
As states across the country are slashing Medicaid reimbursements and taking other measures to cut costs, seniors are the collateral damage. Pharmacies in Texas started closing the next day after the state transitioned its Medicaid patients to managed care. Many rural areas only have one pharmacy to begin with, how will seniors access their medication if their only community pharmacy is forced to shut down?
In California, proposed 10 percent cuts to the state’s Medicaid program (Medi-Cal) threaten more than pharmacies. Senior health centers and care facilities will also feel the effects.
You can help us spread the word by visiting http://rxchoiceandaccess.com — by lending our voices, we may be able to help stop some of these disastrous reforms before they have the chance to hurt America’s seniors!
submitted by Pharmacy Choice & Access Now
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