Welcome Resident Kelly

Hello everyone! This is Meghan Kelly, fourth year pharmacy student from the University of Minnesota. I’ll follow suit with Dan’s blog and give a brief introduction about myself. I’m originally from Guayaquil, Ecuador but I am now officially a Minnesota resident. I graduated from North Park University in Chicago with a B.S. in Biology. My rotations have been a great experience and I’ve been able to work at MN Department of Human Services, WestSide Clinic, and HCMC, to name a few sites. I plan to continue my education next year and will be pursuing a Ph.D in Social and Administrative Pharmacy through the University of Minnesota. Since I’ve only decided on my future till that point, I’m not sure what will happen next.

I have just completed my first week out of five with MPhA and I have to say I’m pretty giddy about this whole experience. I started out on Monday sitting in on a hearing regarding patient copay's for IV administered vs. orally administered chemotherapy. I didn’t get much from that meeting; I ended up sitting among a slew of lobbyists who chatted during the whole meeting. However, it was a great introduction to the inner-workings of the Capitol. This was necessary because I got caught up in following the ‘epilepsy bill,’ house file 1320 (senate file 1137) through two committees.

MPhA has issued a brief on HF 1320 detailing the issue; it is available in the advocacy section of the website titled ‘Generic Substitution.’ (http://www.mpha.org/displaycommon.cfm?an=1&subarticlenbr=23 ) The discussion has been around for a while and this is not the first time groups have tried to pursue legislative action on the subject. It becomes a battle of emotions vs. data, as the proponents have provided plenty of tearful testimonies while the opponents have come back with numbers, both financial and scientific. The debate has led the FDA to study the effects of switching brands and generics on breakthrough seizures with an answer to be provided at the end of this year. As a student pharmacist, I understand the concern. However, as a student pharmacist I also know the systems in place to help patients be in control of their health. I wish I could understand where those systems have failed to understand why legislation is needed to rule that substitutions can not be made without patient and provider consent.

Currently the bill is in the hands of the Health Care and Human Services Finance Committee. Meeting agenda’s are undetermined, but I expect to be sitting in on a few more hearings.

My observations on the week:

1. It is incredibly easy to voice your opinion to your representative or senator. They are more than willing to listen and even give advice on how to move forward. I’m learning how necessary it is to speak up particularly because I keep seeing the same people at the Capitol. Makes me wonder who they are speaking for and if it’s what I would stand for. 
2. The intricacies of committee organization are never ending. Thank goodness for people who understand the system and know how to strategize to determine the next move. 
3. I enjoy being at the Capitol. 
4. It’s all about $$$. I have a feeling when legislators don’t want to make a hard decision, they’ll just allow the financial implications to determine a bill’s fate.

So, a head’s up on what’s to come: We’re looking for you to call your Representative to tell them how you feel about HF 1320. Also, Medicaid reimbursement and Medical Education and Research Costs funding will be appearing on the legislative horizon. Keep an eye out.

Ask me again at the end of this rotation if I’m still excited by legislation. By that time I will have been more exposed to the maze that is the written and unwritten rules of the legislative process. In the meantime I will keep my hopes up that the work I am doing is moving pharmacy forward to the benefit of those who serve pharmacy and those who rely on pharmacy services.