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Pharmacy Quality Assurance Commission appointees Patrick Gallagher and Hawkins de France testify to Senate committee
Summary
Patrick Gallagher and Hawkins de France, current members of the Pharmacy Quality Assurance Commission, appeared before the Senate Health and Long Term Care Committee March 13 for their gubernatorial-appointment confirmations and discussed pharmacy scope, patient-centered care and 340B program context.
Two gubernatorial appointees to the Pharmacy Quality Assurance Commission, Patrick Gallagher and Hawkins de France, spoke to the Senate Health and Long Term Care Committee on March 13 as part of confirmation hearings.
Patrick Gallagher, who told the committee he has served on the commission since August 2019, described nearly 30 years as a practicing pharmacist in retail, long-term care, clinical and hospital settings. Gallagher said his breadth of experience helps him evaluate licensee testimony and guide investigatory resources. "These experiences have equipped me with a comprehensive perspective that I believe has been invaluable during my tenure in the commission," he said.
Senators questioned Gallagher about expanding pharmacists’ roles in collaborative practice and patient-centered care. Gallagher advocated broader use of collaborative practice agreements and described pharmacists handling medication selection and monitoring in close coordination with practitioners, particularly to support federally qualified health centers. "We're a stretch away from there," he said, referencing statutory and operational barriers, and he urged consideration of how technology (for example, shared patient records) could enable expanded pharmacist roles.
Hawkins de France, the commission’s current chair and a nuclear pharmacist, described the specialized role of nuclear pharmacists in making radiopharmaceuticals for diagnosis and therapy and said he supported adding business-owner voices to the commission. "Collaboration and a balanced dialogue are extremely important," he said in response to a question about House Bill 1009. De France said he welcomed Representative Lowe’s bill as a way to broaden voices on the commission.
Gallagher and de France also discussed the 340B drug-pricing program when asked; Gallagher described 340B as a federal program that provides discounted drugs to certain hospitals and safety-net providers and said the commission rarely takes action unless state-level problems arise. Both appointees said they would welcome committee consideration of their confirmations in a subsequent meeting.
No confirmation votes were recorded at the March 13 hearing; both appointees were sworn and their testimony was recorded for the committee’s consideration.
