Delco relied on pharmacists for essential care during the pandemic

The prominent sign on the front window of the only independent pharmacy in Springfield read “Now available.” I didn’t know if the sign would motivate patients to visit my pharmacy to receive their COVID-19 vaccine after it was first approved in December 2020. But I knew it was critical for members of Delaware County and the surrounding region of Philadelphia to have access to essential care and services at my pharmacy.

Fifty-five thousand COVID-19 vaccines and more than two years since the U.S. declared a public health emergency, my work continues to protect residents in an area that lacked a local health department. But the work of our pharmacy and others across Pennsylvania to keep communities safe isn’t assured — in fact, it’s in jeopardy. If Congress doesn’t act, people in my community and thousands more like it will be at risk of losing access to the essential care and services provided by pharmacists like me.

Pennsylvanians have faced many obstacles over the years to access health care, and COVID-19 has aggravated these access barriers. Many local clinics have closed, leaving residents to wait months before they can get an appointment with a health care provider. Pennsylvanians have been able to rely on pharmacists to access care and support during these times — which was especially important in Delco, where a high community risk for COVID-19 persists.

Today, pharmacists are providing critical services — including testing and vaccination for COVID-19 — to communities under temporary local, state, and federal emergency authorities instituted in response to the COVID-19 public health emergency.

At the height of the pandemic, my pharmacist colleagues and I knew we had to ensure Delco patients had access to various point-of-care tests, COVID-19 vaccines, and other vaccines to prevent communicable diseases. More than 30,000 patients registered to receive the COVID-19 vaccine after limited supplies became available in my pharmacy. As more vaccine doses became available, we opened mobile vaccination sites across Delco, and went door-to-door to ensure patients could get their COVID-19 vaccine. This was critical for the homebound and seniors, many of whom were unable or were too afraid to leave their homes.

Vaccine rates for childhood diseases other than COVID (such as measles or polio) also plummeted during the pandemic, which caused its own type of health crisis. For children in Delco who could not return to school without proof of vaccination, this became a serious problem. Recognizing the need to ensure these young Pennsylvanians could continue school in person (and receive the COVID-19 vaccine, once they were eligible), we organized and staffed multiple vaccination sites in school district gyms around Delaware County, where pharmacists in superhero costumes welcomed children to a carnival-themed vaccination site replete with candy and balloons. By the end of the numerous vaccination clinics and carnivals, we had vaccinated more than 18,000 children.

We work hard to protect the people of our community because they need us — not just because other care options are limited, but also because they trust their local pharmacists.

But the emergency authorization that permits us to provide testing and vaccination for COVID-19 is due to expire in mid-July. When federal health officials eventually lift these emergency authorities, patients could lose access to the essential services from pharmacists they have come to rely during the pandemic.

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Congress can take action to prevent this dangerous disruption to care for Pennsylvanians by enacting H.R. 7213, a bipartisan bill to continue access for Medicare beneficiaries to pharmacist care and services like COVID-19 testing, vaccination, and treatment. The bill would also ensure that we can continue to provide a select number of other services — like testing for COVID-19, influenza, strep throat, and respiratory viruses — and make available treatments for many of those conditions. The bill would also ensure that pharmacists are adequately reimbursed for these services.

I urge the entire Pennsylvania congressional delegation to support H.R. 7213 to maintain patient access to essential care provided by pharmacists, both through the endemic phase of COVID-19 and into the next public health emergency. Doing so will enable pharmacists in Delco and across the commonwealth to protect our neighbors and sustain a trusted and critical source of care where few other accessible options exist.

Chichi Ilonzo Momah is the CEO and Pharmacist-in-Charge of Springfield Pharmacy located in Delco, Pennsylvania.