Pharmacists Best-Positioned to Address Social Determinants of Health | NCPDP 2025
Vin Gupta, MD, former Chief Medical Officer at Amazon Pharmacy and renowned US medical analyst, discusses pharmacists’ ability to reach communities and address social determinants of health.
Pharmacists are significantly rooted in their respective communities more so than most other providers, making them the health care professionals best-positioned to address social determinants of health (SDOH).
“Pharmacists are about as embedded a clinician in somebody’s community as anybody, more so probably than physicians, than nurses. They are truly the front line,” said Vin Gupta, MD, former Chief Medical Officer at Amazon Pharmacy and renowned US medical analyst. “When I think about what pharmacists are well-positioned to do, I see this all the time within the 4 walls of a hospital, they’re really well-positioned to do patient counseling.”
At the National Council for Prescription Drug Programs (NCPDP) 2025 Annual Conference, held May 5 to May 7 in Scottsdale, Arizona, Gupta hosted a keynote presentation centered around the future of health care and the connectivity needed to drive better patient outcomes.
After his presentation, Drug Topics caught up with Gupta to get his perspectives on pharmacists within health care as a whole.
Watch this video to gain further insights on pharmacists’ abilities in the context of a community setting. On top of their medication expertise—among other areas of increased knowledge—pharmacists have unique patient relationship tools that allow them to stand out amongst other providers within their community.
Read more from our coverage of NCPDP 2025.
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