To: NACDS Chain and Supplier Members From: Steven C. Anderson, FASAE, CAE, IOM President & Chief Executive Officer Date: June 2, 2026

I want to draw your attention to an excellent development: a powerful position taken by The Washington Post Editorial Board, published May 28, titled, “Alaska’s good idea to empower pharmacists.”

The Washington Post has clearly endorsed the kind of pharmacist scope-of-practice modernization that NACDS and our partners have championed, and secured, for years.

What the Legislation Does

Alaska’s House Bill 195 — which passed the Alaska Legislature on its final day of session and which still must be signed by Governor Mike Dunleavy — would allow pharmacists to prescribe medications for general health and wellness, disease prevention, and conditions that are minor or self-limiting, don’t require a new diagnosis, or can be diagnosed with a CLIA-waived test such as the flu, strep throat, and urinary tract infections, and other conditions that fall within their education, training and expertise. As The Washington Post notes, like many states, Alaska is struggling with a shortage of physicians, especially in its vast rural areas, a story repeated in communities coast to coast. This important legislation will help strengthen rural healthcare delivery by leveraging the expertise of pharmacists to connect Alaskans to needed healthcare services.

Recognition for the Alaska Pharmacy Association

We want to recognize and thank the Alaska Pharmacy Association and its Executive Director, Brandy Seignemartin, PharmD, whose tireless advocacy was instrumental in moving HB 195 to this point. NACDS has been pleased and proud to work alongside them. Their leadership exemplifies what is possible when state associations, pharmacies, and national partners coordinate strategically and persistently.

Why This Editorial Transcends Alaska

This editorial’s significance is not confined to Alaska. As The Washington Post itself frames the issue, this is a story about a national trend — about what states are doing, should do, and must do. It is, in effect, a national call to action wrapped around an Alaska case study, and it reflects and amplifies the very themes that NACDS Chair Dave Warner (President and Chief Executive Officer, KPH Healthcare Services, Inc.); NACDS Past Chair Rick Gates (Chief Pharmacy Officer, Walgreen Co.); and I put forward in our remarks at the 2026 NACDS Annual Meeting: Americans will benefit from state and federal successes to ensure that pharmacists practice at the top of their education.

The Final Paragraph — Read It, Share It, Use It

I especially urge each of you to read and internalize the final paragraph of the editorial:

“All these criticisms overlook the benefits of pharmacy liberalization, especially in underserved areas. Idaho’s reforms helped spur the opening of pharmacies in small towns that had been without them for decades. There is no evidence of adverse effects. Those are successes other states should be emulating.”

This paragraph is powerful because it takes on directly the criticisms of the bill voiced by some in Alaska — and rebuts them not with theory but with results. It points to the success of other states, most notably Idaho, which in many ways has been the gold standard for pharmacist scope-of-practice modernization. The Washington Post makes the case plainly and clearly, and in an evidence-based argument we need policymakers in every state to hear.

This is the kind of language that belongs in op-eds, legislative testimony, coalition letters, and conversations with policymakers in every state. Please share it widely with your government affairs teams, state association partners, and in-state coalitions.

Closing

This editorial is a positive and powerful analysis that validates the arguments and the advocacy that NACDS and allies have advanced for years. It is another moment to celebrate — but more importantly, another moment to act. Let’s use it. Let’s amplify it. And let’s keep the momentum going that the Alaska Pharmacy Association, and the people of Alaska, have carried forward so meaningfully.

Thank you, as always, for your partnership and your leadership.