The 2025 WV Legislative Session concluded on April 12th, and the West Virginia Pharmacists Association, pharmacists, pharmacy staff, and patients have a lot to celebrate, in large part due to the 140+ pharmacy-focused individuals who attended Pharmacy Day at the Capitol on March 3rd, as well as the numerous phone calls and emails logged throughout the process. As many of you felt, this was a chaotic legislative session with twists and turns, but after “shining a light on WV Pharmacy,” the WV Pharmacists Association successfully navigated all the obstacles and achieved the desired results on 100% of our bills of interest.

First, we advocated against HB 2938, which would have made ivermectin over the counter in West Virginia. The education we provided legislators about the drug interactions and poisonings kept the bill from advancing out of the House Health and Human Resources Committee.

We were also busy with multiple immunization bills, which would have weakened our current requirements for childhood immunizations. With measles outbreaks in all our neighboring states, we stood with other healthcare professionals throughout the state to defend our children and communities as stewards of public health. After numerous amendments to SB 460, it was defeated in the House of Delegates. Soon after, two strike-and-insert amendments to insert exemptions were introduced in bills unrelated to immunizations, which were pulled before a vote. Without responding to our calls to action, these bills may have been passed.

Our highlight moment of the legislative session happened on Thursday, April 24th, when Governor Patrick Morrisey signed SB 526 into law to help improve healthcare access across West Virginia! This important legislation takes effect on July 11, 2025. It authorizes pharmacists to prescribe medications, excluding controlled substances, for conditions that have a test that is used to guide diagnosis or clinical decision-making that is waived under the federal Clinical Laboratory Improvement Amendments of 1988, which indicates the existence of the following conditions only:

1. influenza;

2. SARS-COV-2; and

3. RSV; or refill an expired prescription for an epinephrine injection device.

Pharmacists must notify the patient's primary care physician within 72 hours of receiving the test result and the prescribed medication. If the patient does not have a primary care provider, the pharmacist shall attempt to refer the patient to a primary care physician.

WV joins twenty-four other states, including neighboring Virginia and Kentucky, in increasing patient access by utilizing our skills to treat self-limiting conditions through early detection and treatment.

With ongoing physician shortages and overwhelmed healthcare systems, enabling pharmacists to provide care for certain conditions can help reduce the burden on clinics and emergency rooms. This was demonstrated during the COVID-19 pandemic, when pharmacies played a critical role in test-and-treat services. SB 526 provides West Virginians with more timely, convenient, and cost-effective care, potentially preventing unnecessary ER visits and reducing overall healthcare costs. The impact of this vital legislation will be especially beneficial to rural communities, where healthcare access is often limited.

Community pharmacies are convenient, accessible, trusted, and preferred healthcare destinations, especially in rural areas. Independent research conducted by Deloitte predicts that point-of-care testing will surpass immunizations as a revenue driver for community pharmacies. It is a win-win for patients and pharmacies to improve patient outcomes and foster stronger relationships with their pharmacists.

Special thanks to Krista Capehart, Brittany Riley, Tommy Pile, Tom Kines, Rob Duncan, and Matt Rafa, who attended committee meetings and testified for the importance of this bill for our patients!

If you are interested in legislative advocacy, you can join our legislative committee by updating your profile on our website here or by emailing us at info@wvpharmacy.org to be added. We will be working over the next couple of months to initiate the conversation for the next session, so your feedback is valuable to continue “Shining a Light on WV Pharmacy!”