PALM BEACH, Fla. — With health care at the forefront of the national policy debate, the National Association of Chain Drug Stores, Alexandria, Va., is poised to continue its proactive course, emphasizing the valuable and essential role pharmacy can play, said Steven Anderson, the association’s president and chief executive officer. Anderson spoke this week at NACDS’ Annual Meeting here. With a new president, Congress, governors and state legislators set to take office in 2009, Anderson said that the industry needs to respond. “We just may be entering a defining age for health care in this nation, and a defining age for the republic. This may be our opportunity. The stakes are high.” To be treated fairly in public policy, Anderson said NACDS needs to continue to tell the industry’s story. He described the Washington advertising campaign launched in February as an example of the association’s efforts to establish pharmacy in its rightful spot within the health care system. “We have a vision for the future. We are branding pharmacies as the face of neighborhood health care,” Anderson said. He noted that retail stores with pharmacies have a total annual economic impact of $2.2 trillion.

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