New York State Department of Health Recognizes National Pharmacist Day

Department Celebrates Important Contributions of Pharmacists

ALBANY, N.Y. (January 10, 2025) –The New York State Department of Health recognizes National Pharmacist Day, observed on January 12, by celebrating contributions pharmacists make to ensure all New Yorkers have access to critical health resources.

"As someone who grew up working in my family's small-town pharmacy in Cohoes, I know how vital pharmacists are to helping people achieve and maintain good health," State Health Commissioner Dr. James McDonald said. "Pharmacists have been essential in ensuring that all New Yorkers, regardless of income or location, have access to vaccinations and medications that fight various diseases. We thank pharmacists for their dedication to ensuring that patients receive safe and effective treatment and for being health care professionals with great work ethic and compassion."

"The Pharmacists Society of the State of New York thanks the Department of Health and Dr. McDonald for continuing to support our members," Pharmacists Society of the State of New York Executive Director Joseph J. Bova said. "We are also appreciative of the legislature and the Governor for enacting legislation that continues to expand pharmacists' scope of practice, and we are looking forward to further expansion in 2025. As the most accessible health care professionals in our great state, pharmacists have and will continue to be a primary resource for those in need."

Pharmacists enable widespread access to health care services. Ninety percent of Americans live within five miles of a pharmacy, including traditionally underserved urban and rural communities with limited access to primary care providers.

During the early stages of the COVID pandemic, pharmacies served as community-based locations where individuals could find testing for the virus. As vaccines and boosters became more widely available, and as more populations became eligible, pharmacies and pharmacists increasingly took on the responsibility of protecting the public from various strains and waves. They quickly became one of the primary places people turned to for their COVID vaccines, boosters and now treatment for people infected with the disease.

Governor Kathy Hochul and the State Department of Health are working to expand the role pharmacists have in ensuring health care access and advancing health equity.

In March 2024, Governor Kathy Hochul announced that Commissioner McDonald issued a standing order authorizing pharmacists to dispense three types of hormonal contraception medication without a prescription.

In August 2024, Commissioner McDonald issued a statewide standing order allowing pharmacists in New York State to administer the respiratory syncytial virus (RSV) vaccination to eligible individuals, including adults 75 years and older, people 60-75 with underlying medical conditions and pregnant people.

In September 2024, Governor Hochul and Commissioner McDonald announced the Commissioner's standing order allowing all eligible New Yorkers to receive the new COVID vaccine at any pharmacy in New York State without a prescription from their health care provider.

The Department thanks and appreciates all New York State pharmacists for ensuring the health and well-being of New Yorkers.