The 2008 NACDS Pharmacy & Technology Conference offers the most expansive and timely selection of education programming in the industry with topics covering the most critical issues facing chain pharmacy today.  This is the only industry conference that provides solution-oriented educational programming that will help you run your business better! 

In addition to the programming listed below, the following sessions are currently in development for this year’s conference:

Trends affecting the pharmacist shortage   Health Information Technology Pedigree issues   Value-based purchasing Pharmacy advocacy   RFID …and much more

Please continue to check back for details as updates are made often.

Sunday, August 24, 2008

Forewarned is Forearmed: Recently Reported Medication Errors and How to Avoid Them in Your Pharmacy

Time:		9:45 a.m. – 10:45 a.m.
Presenter:	•	Donna Horn, RPh, DPh Institute for Safe Medication Practices (ISMP)

A helpful strategy for addressing medication errors is learning about errors and near misses that have occurred in other organizations and using that information to identify potential problems within your company or pharmacies. This session will include a brief description of a number of reported medication errors and medication safety problems, recommendations from the Institute of Safe Medication Practices (ISMP) to reduce the risk of errors, and will incorporate discussion with participants. Participants will have the opportunity to review safeguards they may have implemented regarding previously identified medication safety concerns and will be educated about new issues.

Preventing Prescription and OTC Drug Abuse: The New Focus in the War on Drugs

Time:

9:45 a.m. – 10:45 a.m.

The federal government is locked in on what it has identified as a new front in the war on drugs: abuse of the prescription and over-the-counter drugs that teens can find in their own homes. Public and private initiatives are looking to the entire supply chain, including retail pharmacy, to be part of the solution. This session will focus on the dynamics that have created this new drug abuse concern, and what retail pharmacy realistically can do.

Medicaid Reimbursement: Litigation, Legislation, and Regulation

Time:		9:45 a.m. – 10:45 a.m.
Presenters:	•	Don Bell, JD National Association of Chain Drug Stores (NACDS)
	•	Carol Kelly National Association of Chain Drug Stores (NACDS)
	•	Gary Wirth, RPh National Association of Chain Drug Stores (NACDS)

All AMP, all the time!  That has what it has felt like for pharmacy for the past year and a half.  During that time, the industry has aggressively challenged and sought to reform the faulty Average Manufacturer Price (AMP) methodology for pharmacy Medicaid reimbursement.  Last December, we successfully halted the implementation of the CMS AMP Rule, but we still are seeking a federal legislative remedy and working to limit its impact in the states.  This session will give a comprehensive update on what is happening in Court, on the Hill and in the state capitols as pharmacy continues to try to right the wrong of AMP.

Special Session for Lawyers – BY INVITATION ONLY
Industry Litigation Overview: Legal Actions Impacting Pharmacy’s Bottom Line

Time:		1:00 p.m. – 3:00 p.m.
Presenters:	•	Rick Ball, Esq. Duane Morris LLP
	•	Nick Lynn, Esq. Duane Morris LLP

During this session, speakers will discuss the latest about cases impacting your pharmacy business both at the pharmacy counter and the front end and attendees will learn how much is going on in the courts across the country that matters to you and your client.  Now, more than ever, not only legislators and regulators impact pharmacy, judges impact the well being of our business community too.  At this session, attendees can expect to hear about the latest in industry litigation, like the on-going class action lawsuits against manufacturers and pricing compendiums over AWP prices, provider lawsuits challenging reduced reimbursement in the states, class actions over retailer credit card security, the Visa anti-trust lawsuit, class actions regarding tainted imported products, and other timely matters.  This is a “must attend” for all pharmacy counsel!

Monday, August 25, 2008

Significant Trends Affecting the Pharmacist Shortage

Time:		10:15 a.m. – 11:15 a.m.
Presenter:	•	Katherine Knapp, PhD Touro University - California College of Pharmacy

Learn about the latest trends impacting the pharmacist shortage during this session. Recent data from the Aggregate Demand Index and NACDS' manpower survey will be used to interpret the shortage on the national and state levels. This session will also analyze the full-time equivalent (FTE) differential and what it means to the future workforce.  The impact of the baby boomer generation will also be discussed. This session will also explore pharmacy school trends, including new schools, applicant rates and types of applicants, and international graduates.

Fraud and Abuse: New Standards and Pharmacy Audits

Time:		10:15 a.m. – 11:15 a.m.
Presenter:	•	Alan Schabes, Esq. Benesch, Friedlander, Coplan & Aronoff LLP

At this session, you will learn about CMS’s recent requirement that all pharmacies participating in Medicare Part D be trained in fraud, waste, and abuse prevention.  The session will also give you an overview of what the training should entail, its purpose, and training resources.  Additionally, recent audit practices in the states which are resulting in purported findings of fraud and abuse by pharmacies in areas previously treated as administrative errors will be discussed.  Finally, steps your company may consider taking to prevent being caught unprepared in this new enforcement environment will be shared. 

Medication Therapy Management: What’s Next for Community Pharmacy?

Time:

10:15 a.m. – 11:15 a.m.

This session will explore the landscape of MTM services currently provided in the community pharmacy setting and steps necessary to garner widespread adoption of these services by payers, providers and patients.  The importance of a uniform documentation and billing process to be used by all providers will also be discussed, including initiatives currently underway to standardize elements of MTM services and how community pharmacy can play a role.  Also, different perspectives related to MTM will be explored.

Pharmacy Practice Issues Update: Recent Changes and Trends in State Pharmacy Laws and Regulations

Time:

10:15 a.m. – 11:15 a.m.

This session will provide an update on pharmacy practice issues important to chain pharmacy operators. The discussion will focus on notable changes and trends in state laws and regulations affecting pharmacy practice and operations, including generic substitution, electronic pseudoephedrine log requirements, prescription monitoring programs and other diversion issues, prescription drug pedigree requirements, and other topical issues pertinent to the practice of pharmacy.

Marketing the Health Solutions Retailers Have in Store

Time:

10:15 a.m. – 11:15 a.m.

There is a difference between selling products and marketing health, and effectiveness in the latter can produce results in the former. Retailers that brand themselves as health solutions, rather than just a place to buy products, can achieve new levels of success, and can help consumers reach new levels of health awareness. This session will focus on the real-world dynamics of this emerging area of focus, and serve as a laboratory for generating ideas that participants can put to use.

Special Session for Lawyers – BY INVITATION ONLY
Medicare Part D: Contracting and Mail Order Competition

Time:

1:00 p.m. – 3:00 p.m.

Medicare Part D has changed the way pharmacies do business with PBMs and health plans.  Part D complicates industry relationships by imposing many new legal requirements in thousands of pages of statutes, regulations and agency guidances.  This session will discuss the impact that Part D has on contracts and competition among pharmacies, PBMs and plans. 

Tuesday, August 26, 2008

Pharmaceutical Trends, Issues and Forecasts

Time:		8:00 a.m. – 9:30 a.m.
Presenter:	•	Douglas M. Long IMS HEALTH

Get an expert’s view of the 2008 pharmaceuticals market, highlighting trends, issues and forecasts in demographics, sales, markets and more.  Find out which industry segments are growing or declining, and how evolving trends may impact you and your business.

Pharmacy Customer Satisfaction: Building Customer Loyalty

Time:		9:45 a.m. – 10:45 a.m.
Presenter:	•	James M. Wilson, RPh, MBA Wilson Health Information, LLC

Attaining a high level of customer satisfaction is crucial to achieving customer loyalty and business success.  Many factors influence a customer's perspective of a pharmacy, such as convenience, pricing and store product and service offerings. However, timeliness, knowledge of insurance coverage, adequate supply of medications, and consistently delivering superior professional and customer service keeps customers coming back.  This session will present new results from the annual WilsonRx Pharmacy Customer Satisfaction Survey that identifies retail customers' perception of their pharmacy, their level of satisfaction, and loyalty to the store they use most often to fill prescriptions. These results help you to understand what is most important to your customers and how to achieve a better perspective on how to increase customer loyalty and satisfaction.

Business Continuity in Natural and Man-Made Disasters and the Role of RxResponse

Time:		9:45 a.m. – 10:45 a.m.
Presenter:	•	Erin Mullen, RPh, PhD RxResponse

Emergency preparedness is critical for all businesses, including the pharmacy industry.  This session will explore planning for business continuity in the event of both man-made and natural disasters. Also discussed will be the role of RxResponse, an information-sharing forum comprised of pharmaceutical manufacturers, distributors, pharmacies, hospitals, disaster relief agencies, and state/federal government agencies.  RxResponse engages to help foster information flow during a severe natural disaster, large-scale terrorist attack or a pandemic that disrupts the normal supply of medicines.

Pharmacy Quality Alliance: Facilitating  High-Value Pharmacy Services Through Better Performance Information

Time:

9:45 a.m. – 10:45 a.m.

The Pharmacy Quality Alliance (PQA) has been working to improve healthcare quality and patient safety through a collaborative process in which key stakeholders agree on a strategy for measuring performance at the pharmacy and pharmacist levels since its inception. This session will explore initiatives that PQA is currently engaged in, including an update on the quality measures that have been adopted by PQA and several demonstration projects to evaluate pharmacy performance based on these measures.

Get Ready, Get Set, Get Accredited: What You Need to Know to Beat the Clock for DMEPOS Accreditation

Time:		9:45 a.m. – 10:45 a.m.
Presenter:	•	Eleni Anagnostiadis, RPh National Association of Boards of Pharmacy (NABP)

CMS recently announced accreditation deadline dates for suppliers of DMEPOS. Suppliers with more than 25 enrolled locations have until September 30, 2009. New suppliers seeking enrollment on or after March 1, 2008 must be accredited before applying for their supplier number. This session will provide information on the accreditation process including background of the federally mandated DMEPOS accreditation requirement, impact on community pharmacy, accreditation deadlines, and steps that chain pharmacies can take to prepare for a smooth accreditation process.

Legal and Regulatory Issues Facing Retail Clinics

Time:		9:45 a.m. – 10:45 a.m.
Presenters:	•	Tine Hansen-Turton, MGA Convenient Care Association
	•	Caroline Ridgway Convenient Care Association

This session will discuss the legal and regulatory lay of the land for pharmacy’s new venture - retail clinics.  Speakers will report on the current state of this growing field and the different business models out there as well as discuss contracting and regulatory issues that may arise when setting up and running a retail clinic.  In addition, potential fraud and abuse concerns that may arise in the retail clinic setting and the latest on successful and unsuccessful state efforts to regulate retail clinics and the federal response will also be discussed.  Lastly, this session will explore what the future holds for retail clinics. 

Medicare Part B: Competitive Bidding for DME

Time:

11:00 a.m. – 12:00 noon

Products and services provided under Medicare Part B continue to be an important part of retail pharmacy's business.  However, CMS has embarked on a new program that requires Part B suppliers in certain parts of the country to competitively bid to provide certain items of durable medical equipment (DME), limiting the number of suppliers that might be able to provide these products. This could eventually affect the ability of pharmacy providers to supply Medicare DME items to beneficiaries.  Suppliers participating in the competitive bidding program will also have to become accredited by meeting new CMS quality and business standards. This session will focus on what retail pharmacy operators need to know about Medicare Part B competitive bidding program for DME.

A Matter of Trust: Crisis Communications for All Pharmacy Personnel

Time:

11:00 a.m. – 12:00 noon

The best time to think about crisis communications is before something goes wrong. A crisis demands an immediate response, not the beginning of the planning phase. The good news is that a well-prepared crisis communications plan is empowering, and can simultaneously decrease panic and increase effectiveness in responding should a crisis strike. This session will focus on the core elements of a crisis communications plan and provide participants practical insights on the ways that they may be called on to execute a plan, from corporate personnel to pharmacists on the front line.  

 

All contents © 2008 National Association of Chain Drug Stores, Inc. All Rights Reserved
Founded in 1933, the National Association of Chain Drug Stores works to provide the chain drug industry with a unified voice necessary for growth and success. As we celebrate our 75th anniversary, NACDS is still dedicated to its original vision: representing the nation's leading retail chain pharmacies and suppliers.