PHOENIX — A bill at the State Capitol seeks to change how you get treated for common illnesses like the flu, COVID, and strep throat. Known as the “Test and Treat Bill,” House Bill 2444 would allow pharmacists to test for certain illnesses, then provide treatment on the spot. It is something they can’t do right now in Arizona. The proposed legislation is set to be heard this week.
In rural Arizona, access to health care can mean long waits. Amanda Wood has seen it, as a mom and a school nurse in Yavapai County.
“My six-year-old broke her nose, and I had to wait two hours to be seen just for to find out it actually was broken,” Wood said. “Parents are waiting in long lines to seek treatment at a pediatrics office in our area. We don't have very many pediatricians, so that pushes it to Urgent Care. Urgent Care is really busy. You'll wait four hours just to be seen for something.”
It’s why she supports House Bill 2444. Right now in Arizona, pharmacists can test for common viruses, but cannot treat positive cases. The proposed legislation would change that.
“That means that the student is receiving treatment a lot sooner. It's identified sooner, and then they're back in school. Which is what we want, them to be healthy and in school learning, as well as slowing the spread in the family,” Wood said.
Jason Dykstra, a pharmacist in the Prescott-Chino Valley area, says this would address gaps in care in underserved areas.
“If they're positive, all we can really do is kind of throw our hands up and say, ‘wish we could do more,’” Dykstra said.
He says it’s one way Arizona’s 10,000 pharmacists can help.
“In the rural setting, just giving another access to care, and expedient,” Dykstra said. “We can get a test done in 5-10 minutes... get the prescription filled and to them, let’s say all of this would be fairly reasonable, within a half hour.”
Arizona Pharmacy Association has pushed for this policy change in years past.
“All of our neighboring states allow for test and treat right now,” Garret Turner, Arizona Pharmacy Association CEO, said.
He says there is a big need in Arizona, referencing the most recent KFF data from 2024 that shows only 35 percent of primary health care needs are being met.
“Most people live within five to ten miles of a pharmacy, whereas those individuals who are in the rural communities are much further away from either a primary care physician or from a hospital or urgent care center,” Turner said.
However, similar legislation has failed in previous sessions, as some physicians have raised concerns.
“It asked pharmacists to be diagnosticians,” Dr. Andrew Carroll, a family physician in Chandler, said. “They asked pharmacists to look at a patient and evaluate them and make a diagnosis based on the results of a single, somewhat flawed test.
Dr. Carroll fears protocol-based treatment could lead to misdiagnosis.
“We see kids with multiple conditions who come in with a strep throat, and it may be not the right medication, amoxicillin or penicillin, might not be the right medication for that patient. But these protocols ask pharmacists to give them that medication,” Dr. Carroll said. “There's no room to for them to make judgment calls outside of just the whatever the test tells them to do.”
His views are shared in a statement shared with ABC15 from four Arizona medical organizations opposed to HB 2444. The statement reads in part:
“Pharmacists are invaluable members of the healthcare team, but their education and training, though extensive in medication management, is not a substitute for the comprehensive clinical training that physicians, nurse practitioners, and physician assistants undergo. Enhancing patient care requires collaboration between professionals well trained in their respective, parallel fields, not an attempt to force practitioners to cross over into handling complex medical conditions without appropriate training and expertise.”
One of the bill’s sponsors, Representative Chris Lopez, says doctors would still play a key role. As the legislation is considered, he says lawmakers are working with medical groups to address safety concerns.
“It just gives another convenient and safe way to be treated at a pharmacy,” Rep. Chris Lopez, (R) District 16. “We'll have some more discussions with doctors and pharmacists. So we're very, very confident it's going to have some the momentum.”
