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CARY, N.C. – The Accreditation Commission for Health Care (ACHC) announces the launch of a new infusion pharmacy accreditation service to tackle issues related to clean rooms. This new option, initially piloted in 2022, aims to help infusion pharmacies achieve accreditation without the need for a certified clean room.
In 2022, an ACHC pharmacy customer raised the issue of problematic delays in clean room construction and certification. Without a clean room, infusion pharmacies could not achieve accreditation to begin providing these services. As for services that did not require the clean room, without accreditation, most payers would not recognize the pharmacy’s eligibility for reimbursement.
The solution that ACHC developed is a new service, called Infusion Pharmacy without Sterile Compounding, that focuses on the process of patient care and pharmacy-supplied durable medical equipment within these settings. This accreditation allows pharmacies to fulfill payer requirements without a clean room. For pharmacies that are still in the construction phase of a planned sterile facility, a second ACHC survey, focused on the completed and certified clean room, results in a new accreditation for Infusion Pharmacy Services.
The service, while designed to solve clean room construction and certification delays, has been a boon to other providers, too. Some Specialty Pharmacies dispense immunotherapy drugs and need Infusion Pharmacy Accreditation for billing, but do not need or plan to have a clean room at all.
“This new accreditation option for infusion pharmacy providers is a testament to ACHC’s commitment to innovation and dedication to providing our clients with a relevant, efficient, and streamlined process that maintains regulatory compliance,” said José Domingos, president and CEO of ACHC.
The newly developed program was successfully piloted in 2022 and is now available for other infusion pharmacies. For more information about ACHC and the new two-part accreditation process for infusion pharmacy, visit www.achc.org/irx-no797/.
