Colorectal screening now available at participating Ky. pharmacies

By Heather Close Published November 17, 2022 FEATURED, HEALTH BUSINESS, YOUR HEALTH

Kentucky’s pharmacists and health insurers have teamed up to offer what they say is the nation’s first “pharmacist-led colorectal cancer screening via a non-invasive stool-based test.”

The test was done Sept. 29 at Capital Pharmacy & Medical Equipment in Frankfort, the Kentucky Pharmacists Association and the Kentucky Association of Health Plans said in a Nov. 17 news release.

“Health plans and pharmacists are joining together to tackle a leading cause of death in the commonwealth,” KAHP Executive Director Tom Stephens said.

KAHP gave the Kentucky Pharmacists Education and Research Foundation a $50,000 grant to expand access to these screenings in Kentucky. Participating pharmacies are being reimbursed for pharmacist-led screening and follow-up.

KPA Executive Director Ben Mudd said, “Adding assessment of and screening for colorectal cancer to existing pharmacy protocols can greatly impact our two-decade-long fight to increase CRC screening rates. With early detection, colorectal cancer is a preventable, treatable, and beatable disease.”

The screenings were authorized by a new protocol approved by the Kentucky Board of Pharmacy in September 2021. It lets pharmacists initiate dispensing of noninvasive, stool-based colorectal cancer screening such as a fecal immunochemical test or a stool DNA test. Pharmacies interested in providing the service can contact Dr. Emily Wilkerson at fellow@kphanet.org for more information.