Congress has a real opportunity in the coming weeks to give Medicare beneficiaries access to pharmacist-provided care that their own states already allow. I am writing to update you on where the Main Street Pharmacy Access Act / Ensuring Community Access to Pharmacist Services Act (H.R. 3164 / S. 2426) stands, to share new resources that show how strongly Americans support it, and to ask for your help making sure lawmakers hear from the people they represent.

This bipartisan legislation, led in the House by Reps. Adrian Smith (R-NE), Brad Schneider (D-IL), Diana Harshbarger (R-TN), and Doris Matsui (D-CA) and in the Senate by Sens. John Thune (R-SD) and Mark Warner (D-VA), would enable seniors in Medicare to receive pharmacist-provided testing and treatment for certain common respiratory conditions, such as flu and strep throat, in states that already authorize pharmacists to provide these services. Many other Americans can already access this care, but seniors miss out because pharmacists are overlooked as eligible healthcare providers in the Social Security Act. The bill is a pragmatic fix that would improve access to timely care, ease pressure on emergency rooms, urgent care clinics, and physician offices, and help prevent avoidable and costly hospitalizations.

The legislation has built steady momentum this year. The House Ways and Means Committee advanced H.R. 3164 by a voice vote in May, and the House Energy and Commerce Subcommittee on Health held a hearing on the bill on September 15. In total, 176 members of Congress, almost one-third of both chambers, have cosponsored it, and more than 170 organizations support it, including senior and rural advocacy groups, patient advocacy organizations, pharmacists, and health systems. We are grateful to every lawmaker who has helped bring this legislation so far.

Our goal now is passage before the end of this Congress. Government funding runs through December 11, and the weeks following the November 3 elections will bring funding and possibly other legislative items to the forefront. H.R. 3164 / S. 2426 is well-positioned for inclusion in a larger end-of-year package if one comes together. The legislative path is uncertain and the political climate is intense, which is why sustained, visible support from across the country will make the difference.

To help lawmakers see how strongly their own constituents back this legislation, NACDS has launched a new interactive dashboard at NACDS.org/seniors. It breaks down NACDS-commissioned Morning Consult polling on pharmacist-provided services by state and Congressional district. Nationally, the findings point to an “80-percent issue”: 81% of seniors, 80% of conservative adults, and 85% of liberal adults support pharmacist-provided test-and-treat services for respiratory conditions such as flu and strep throat. Because the results are local, any member of Congress can see exactly where their own constituents stand rather than relying on a single national figure. I encourage you to share the dashboard with your government affairs teams and use your state and district results in your conversations with lawmakers.

We have also produced a short video that walks through the dashboard and highlights what the polling shows. It is a quick way to introduce the data to colleagues, and I hope you will pass it along.

I am asking for your leadership in mobilizing your pharmacy teams. NACDS RxIMPACT has launched an Action Alert urging Congress to pass H.R. 3164 / S. 2426 this year. It includes background on the legislation and a ready-to-use message that pharmacists, technicians, and other team members can send to their House and Senate members in a few minutes. The people who work in our neighborhood pharmacies see every day what access to pharmacist-provided care means for the patients they serve, and their voices carry real weight with the offices that represent them.

Americans have made their view clear, and Congress has a path to act on it before the year ends. There is no substitute for accomplishing this work together, with one voice, through the authority and influence of NACDS. Thank you for your leadership and for everything you do on behalf of all Americans, their pharmacies, and their pharmacy teams.