How Stakeholders Are Looking at DTP Pharmacy to Improve Medication Access

Many experts believe that the current industry’s push toward direct-to-patient (DTP) pharmacy models in the US could result in a dichotomy of retail pharmacies dispensing generic drugs while manufacturers deliver high-cost drugs directly to patients. However, before seeing a large-scale development of DTP pharmacy across the US, they also believe several questions among key stakeholders must be answered.

“I think PHARMA and other companies are looking at this like, what is this landscape going to look like? What is the future of care? Where are patients going to have certain medical conditions [that] need treatment?” Timothy Aungst, PharmD, founder of the Digital Apothecary and professor of pharmacy practice at the Massachusetts College of Pharmacy and Health Sciences (MCPHS), told Drug Topics. “They really need to ensure that the delivery factor gets to those patients, either to avoid primary non-adherence or to have a medical misadventure, or a patient not familiar with the product and then abandon it, which is costly for everyone at play.”

Amid new government initiatives, like TrumpRx, and a reworking of manufacturers’ distribution of medications, the DTP pharmacy model has breathed life into a new and evolving pharmaceutical landscape.

Along with his colleagues Ravi Patel, PharmD, MBA, MS, and Smit Patel, PharmD, Aungst shared his insights on the emerging DTP model, how the federal government has begun its approach toward it, and the myriad of questions needed to be answered to ensure a smooth transition in the greater pharmacy landscape.

“Direct-to-consumer advertisement and reaching out to providers can only get you so far,” continued Aungst. “What is going to be your hub for this information? That's maybe where you could say the argument is this administration may be making a play for that.”

READ MORE: TrumpRx Officially Launches, Introduces Drug Prices

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