By Steve Anderson
As retailers and suppliers gather for the NACDS Annual Meeting, I want to begin with a moment that crystallized both the challenge and the opportunity in front of the pharmacy industry. In November 2025, the officers of NACDS met with Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) administrator Dr. Mehmet Oz. He opened with a simple question: “How are America’s pharmacists feeling right now?” It was direct, human and revealing — exactly the kind of question that gets to the heart of an issue.
We answered candidly. We told Dr. Oz that a broken health care system too often does not reimburse pharmacies fairly or adequately — in many cases, below cost. We explained that pharmacists and pharmacy teams feel the daily strain of big-PBM tactics that create administrative friction and distort the economics of pharmacy care. And we emphasized another hard truth: Despite progress, public policy too often fails to fully empower pharmacists to use their education to meet people’s health and wellness needs.
So how are pharmacy teams supposed to feel? And what are they supposed to do?
Here is what we do know: Dr. Oz has said that states should free pharmacists to provide great service. NACDS intends to translate that into durable federal and state policy — so that patients can access pharmacist-provided services and pharmacies can be paid fairly for delivering them.
Advocacy: The Core Agenda
NACDS’ public policy agenda is straightforward, practical and people-focused: Expand access to pharmacist-provided services, and secure fair reimbursement for pharmacies to deliver those services. Those objectives are inseparable. If policy makers want more care delivered through pharmacies, the system must enable it and pay for it.
PBM reform is the most urgent example of why that alignment matters. In early 2026, the federal government enacted the most significant federal PBM reforms ever. That is a historic step forward. But as with any meaningful reform, the job now is twofold: Ensure strong implementation and enforcement, and continue pushing for additional legislative action where needed.
PBM Reform: Next Steps
In March, NACDS RxImpact Day on Capitol Hill presented a powerful opportunity to thank members of Congress for their work on PBM reform, and to reinforce that momentum matters. But what stood out was this: In meeting after meeting, members of Congress raised PBM reform with us before we even brought it up. And nearly to a person, they emphasized that they know more work is needed — and they are going to do it.
That shift is meaningful. It reflects that the debate has moved from “What are PBMs?” and “Is PBM reform necessary?” to “What do we fix next?” It also reflects something that cannot be said enough: Thank you to NACDS members. NACDS brings strategy, policy development, lobbying, coalition work and communications. But those tools become truly powerful because NACDS members are the force that makes them real — showing policy makers what PBM practices mean for patients, for pharmacy teams and for the ability to deliver care reliably. Grassroots engagement has meant everything in driving results.
Expanding Patient Care Access
Patients increasingly turn to pharmacies because they are accessible, familiar and trusted. Public policy should reflect that reality by expanding access to pharmacist-provided services that states already authorize — particularly for Medicare beneficiaries and other populations with real barriers to care. This is why NACDS continues to prioritize federal legislation — like the Ensuring Community Access to Pharmacist Services Act — that strengthens patients’ ability to access pharmacist services and ensures payment models recognize that those services are health care, not an add-on.
Advocacy today is also about modernization. Pharmacy teams should be able to coordinate care efficiently, reduce administrative burden and help patients navigate a complex system. That requires smart standards and policies that support interoperability, reduce friction and protect trust.
Innovation: Taking Action Now
Technology is a source of real optimism because it helps pharmacy teams deliver care more efficiently and more personally. Across the industry, pharmacies are advancing automation and robotics to improve speed, accuracy and workflow reliability; digital tools that enhance patient engagement and reduce avoidable friction; and AI-enabled capabilities that can help manage complexity — while maintaining appropriate safeguards, oversight and accountability.
The goal is not technology for technology’s sake. The goal is to keep pharmacists focused on patients, using tools that reduce administrative burden and improve the consistency and quality of care. NACDS’ role here is twofold: Convene the industry so retailers and suppliers can share what is working now and what is close behind, and engage policy makers so innovation can scale responsibly, without fragmented rules that slow adoption or undermine patient trust.
Why the NACDS Annual Meeting Matters
This edition is being distributed at the NACDS Annual Meeting for a reason: The NACDS Annual Meeting is where alignment becomes action. It is where the industry sharpens its priorities, builds partnerships, and leaves with a clearer sense of what it will take — together — to deliver results.
We have real momentum on PBM reform. We have clear priorities to expand access to pharmacist services and modernize the system. And we have an industry that is not waiting for the future to arrive.
NACDS is proud to lead alongside our retailer and supplier members, to leverage the total store for the total person. Let’s use this moment to accelerate durable progress for patients, for consumers, for pharmacy teams and for the entire health care system.
Steve Anderson is president and chief executive officer of the National Association of Chain Drug Stores.
