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Our multi-state Federal Advocacy Panel provides critical professional insight and guidance on federal issues affecting independent pharmacy. The panel is a strong cross-section of American Pharmacies members who all are significantly engaged in advocacy efforts in their home states.
American Pharmacies Board Chairman Joe Ochoa of Edinburg, Texas, (right) presides over the panel, which includes independent pharmacy owners from eight states. A former mayor of Edinburg, Ochoa knows politics from the ground up — from his hometown all the way to Washington, D.C. He enjoys strong personal relationships with his state legislators, as well as U.S. Rep. Vicente Gonzalez of TX, who once signed on as co-sponsor of two pro-pharmacy bills after a visit with Ochoa in his Washington office.
Other members of the advisory panel include:
- Grant Brown, owner of several pharmacies in Michigan, is an American Pharmacies Board member and has a long history of engagement with state and federal legislators.
- Rob Bullington of Sevierville, TN, owns three pharmacies in Tennessee and has been very active in state advocacy on his own and as a legislative leader at the Tennessee Pharmacy Association.
- Teresa Dickinson, owner of Melrose Pharmacy in Phoenix, is a founding member of the Arizona Independent Pharmacy Coalition, which passed the state's first PBM bill in 2022. She is a former Board member of Pharmacists United for Truth & Transparency (PUTT).
- Jeffrey Gross, owner of the Mickey Fine Pharmacy & Grill in Beverly Hills, is a longtime California advocacy leader who follows federal issues closely.
- John Hickman, owner of Dyer Drugstore in McKinney, TX, chairs the Texas Advocacy Advisory Panel and has twice been honored with APRx's Advocacy Leadership Award for his efforts in Texas.
- Steve Hoffart, owner of Magnolia Pharmacy in Magnolia, TX, is a national advocacy leader. He serves on the NCPA Committee on State Legislation, and has received our Advocacy Leadership Award three times. He frequently travels to Washington to meet with members of Congress.
- Deb Keaveny, owner of Keaveny Drug in Winsted, MN, is president of the PUTT Board of Directors and founder of the MINDIES (Minnesota Independent Pharmacies) advocacy group in that state.
- Micah Lansford, owner of Roden-Smith Pharmacy in Clovis, NM, serves on the board of the New Mexico Pharmacy Business Council, created and funded in New Mexico by American Pharmacies.
- Jason Turner of Moundsville, WV, owns two pharmacies in that state. He is a leading proponent of med synch and is extremely knowledgeable about PBM DIR assessments.
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