The Department of Health and Human Services’ decision last month to permit pharmacists around the country to conduct testing for COVID-19 put independent pharmacies in the center of many communities’ plans to reopen. For some of those pharmacies, the decision to participate in testing may be one that enables their business to stay open during the pandemic and perhaps reestablish firmer financial footing.

In April, 88% of community pharmacy owners told the National Community Pharmacy Association (NCPA) that they intended to apply for federal COVID-19 relief under the CARES Act or Paycheck Protection Program. Almost half of the responding pharmacies said that the financial health of their business was somewhat poor or very poor.

Against that setting, more than half of community pharmacies expressed interest in administering tests for COVID-19. The diagnostic test that has grabbed the most attention over the last 2 months is the one that indicates whether a patient has an active infection. Increasingly, though, the antibody test that can identify which individuals have recovered from the disease, even if they remained asymptomatic, has risen on the radar of patients, employers, and community leaders as a way to determine who may have immunity. 

Testing could allow pharmacists to reduce the impact of “one-sided contracts from PBMs that pharmacies are being offered,” said NCPA CEO Douglas Hoey. “Expanding services and working in collaboration with local physicians is a key strategy that progressive pharmacies are pursuing to increase their value in the pharmacy network.”

To prepare to offer the tests, pharmacists must apply for a Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Clinical Laboratory Improvements Waiver. The NCPA Innovation Center has a video that explains the process, which is pretty straightforward. 

Pharmacists should also enroll in Medicare Part B as an independent clinical laboratory so that they can bill for the testing and for administering a vaccine when one is available. Of course, the enrollment is not specific to COVID-19, so it also expands pharmacies’ ability to bill for other point-of-care tests and vaccines if they are not already doing those. Enrollment is free. 

Taking these steps can help many pharmacies—and their communities. An NCPA study found that “for millions of Americans, their local independent pharmacy is not only their best option, it’s their only option,” Dr. Hoey noted. 

In about 21% of American ZIP codes, the only pharmacy available is independently owned. In a good number of them, the pharmacist is the only healthcare professional in town, making it even more important to expand COVID-19-related services.

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