Healing the Rift Between the Pharmaceutical Industry and Pharmacy Profession with Joint Guidelines

SUMMARYThis paper discusses how the rift between industry and the profession has hurt both, leading to the commoditization of some drugs and services. In an effort to close the rift, a working document was developed by state pharmacy associations and PhRMA titled “Guiding Principles for a Pharmacy Benefit: A Call for Pharmacy Provider Services and Access to Pharmaceuticals.” The principles provide mutual recognition of the roles of both industry and the profession and an agreement around which alliances can be developed in response to state legislation that does not recognize the role pharmacists or innovative pharmaceuticals play in improving patient outcomes.