Central Florida Pharmacy Association

From the President’s desk, January 2012

I hope that everyone has enjoyed the holiday season and I wish all of you a healthy and prosperous New Year.
 Pharmacist legislative days and the Health Fair are coming up this month in Tallahassee. The Health Fair will be held on Tuesday, January 24th and Wednesday, January 25th at the Leon Civic Center. This presents an opportunity for Pharmacist’s and technician’s to demonstrate the role we play in health care to our elected officials through the offering of health screenings and a presence at Tallahassee. There will be 1.5 hours of CE offered if you register with the FPA and your support is needed for this event to be a success. For more information visit the FPA website at pharmview.com.
 Pharmacist Legislative days at the Capitol also begin that same week and carry on through March. I would encourage all members to “Catch the Advocacy Fever” and participate as your schedule permits and let the decision makers know how you feel about issues that impact your profession. If you chose not to be active in this part of your profession you allow others to make decisions that affect you in your duties and that may not be in your favor.
 The FPA Regulatory and Law conference is also coming up January 28th and 29th, to be held at the Hilton Sandestin in Destin Florida. There will be 12 hours of consultant and general CE offered
Topics to be discussed include:  Medicare Part D 2012-The Good, the Bad, the Ugly; What Do the Numbers 64B-16 Mean?; Successful Compliance with the Pharmacy Practice Act: Review of F.S. 465; Regulatory Compliance Panel Case Study; Navigating the Rough Waters of the Federal Controlled Substance Acts: A Review of Code of Federal Regulations; Update on Florida’s Prescription Drug Monitoring Program; Federal/State Laws that Protect Patient Information: Getting Hip to HIPAA; Managing Public Policy Change that Affect Patient Care; Inspecting Pharmacies for Compliance to Florida Laws. 
Pre-registration deadline ends on Friday January 13th and the room reservation deadline is January 20th 2012. Registration information can be found on the FPA website.
 Senator Mike Fasano, (Rep-New Port Richey) has filed Senate bill 1319 designed to create standards for auditing of pharmacy records.  Recently Florida pharmacies have seen auditing tactics take on a more aggressive nature with dire consequences.  With efforts to reform Florida Medicaid into total managed care programs this issue has taken on a significant level of importance.  The House version HB 1093 is sponsored by Representative Tom Goodson, (Rep-Rockledge).  I urge you to reach out to your state Senator and House Representative and ask that they support these two important pieces of legislation. I will keep you informed on any additional information as it becomes available.
 This month’s program is on Crohn’s disease and is being held at Maggiano’s Little Italy on International drive, Tuesday, January 17th and I know you will find this program relevant to your practice.
 Due to limited seating I am requesting that members RSVP on the voicemail at 407-645-4443 as soon as possible. Going forward, reservations will no longer be accepted by any other means including, but not limited to an e-mail. Please do not delay calling and leaving your name, spelled out please, and phone number as soon as possible to avoid any disappointment.

I look forward to seeing you all at Maggiano’s,