Interests may conflict on pharmacy boards

DEERFIELD, Ill., Dec. 31 (UPI) -- Major U.S. drugstore chains and supermarket pharmacies account for nearly one-in-four pharmacists on state pharmacy boards, a newspaper examination shows.

The appointments, typically made by governors, give consumers the benefit of the pharmacists' expertise. But they also give the chains a potential say about decisions that affect the pharmacy industry, said USA Today, which said it found potential or alleged conflicts of interest.

The conflicts include two Walgreen Co. pharmacists on Florida's board who opposed the maximum fine for another Walgreens pharmacist who failed to catch a prescription error that led to a construction worker's death, the newspaper said.

Another included the only Nevada board member representing the public who doesn't participate in disciplinary matters involving drugstore chains because she also heads a chain-pharmacy advocacy group.

Pharmacy chains dispute allegations of even the appearance of conflicts of interest.

"Members of pharmacy boards serve as advocates for public safety, not as representatives of their employers," CVS Caremark Corp. spokesman Michael DeAngelis told USA Today, echoing Walgreens, Rite Aid Corp. and Wal-Mart Stores Inc.

Pharmacy board members are assigned to protect public health and safety in the dispensing of prescription drugs. Pharmacists make up the majority of each board, but the panels also include non-pharmacists appointed to represent the public.

States require board members to obey conflict-of-interest rules.