Pharmacy Advocacy

Advocating for our profession is increasingly becoming an essential part of our careers. With so many student pharmacists graduating every year and with all the changes in health care, it is imperative that we all start taking charge of our future careers as soon as possible.

In APhA-ASP on the Gainesville Campus, under the Vice President of Policy and Vice President of Policy-Elect are the FPA/ACAP Liaison and the Senior Policy Representative.

The FPA/ACAP Liaison serves as the main source of communication between the Florida Pharmacy Association (FPA), the Alachua County Association of Pharmacists (ACAP), and UF College of Pharmacy students.

The Senior Policy Representative assists the Vice President of Policy with events and speakers with Policy Week. They also are a leader within the committee and assists with the VP of Policy and VP of Policy-Elect in planning policy-related events, such as visiting city hall and coordinating meetings with Florida Representatives.

FPA/ACAP Liaison Chair

  • Anthony Morales

Senior Policy Representative

  • Samuel Walker

Check out our subsection for how our student pharmacists have advocated each year!

City Proclamation

Our members visited Gainesville City Hall for the City Proclamation in honor of American Pharmacist Month in October 2023. We were able to share the importance of our profession with the members of our city and work towards advancing the profession of pharmacy.

Members posing in front of Gainesville City Hall holding their new Proclamation.  Members posing with city representatives.  Members posing in front of Gainesville City Hall holding their new Proclamation.

Legislative Days 2024

Our members attended the Florida Pharmacy Legislative Days held in January. They hosted a health fair to educate attendees about pharmacy services and provided point-of-care testing. They also had the opportunity to meet representatives and legislators to learn more about policy and help address concerns related to our profession.

Members posing with the Florida Capitol seal.    Members posing at the Florida Capitol.

Legislative Days 2020

The legislative days in 2020 happened on January 21-22. Student pharmacists from UF advocated on various pieces of legislation including the Collaborative Practice Agreement and Test and Treat for the state of Florida.

leg days
Student Pharmacists of UF from the Gainesville, Orlando, and Jacksonville campuses!

Legislative Days 2017

Held during the month of March, student Pharmacists were excited to take part in the return of the Health Fair in addition to the various meetings with State Legislators! #AdvoGatoRx

 

Legislative Days 2016

Meeting up with student Pharmacists from all over Florida, Tallahassee was filled with white coats on January 19, 2016. Throughout the day, students and practicing Pharmacists met with various Legislators to advocate for the profession. #AdvoGatoRx

 

Legislative Days 2014

On January 13th, 2014, Michael Jackson, Executive Vice President and CEO of the Florida Pharmacy Association came to the Gainesville campus of the University of Florida College of Pharmacy to give a presentation on advocacy, emerging pharmacy issues currently being discussed in Tallahassee, activities to look forward to at the Legislative Days and Health Fair, and how YOU can get involved! Below is the link to the video recording of the meeting. #AdvoGatoRx