Let me tell you about the June ASAP meeting in Louisville - a delightful city - at the historic Seelbach Hotel. I happen to serve as executive director, so I have a hand in putting together the agenda for the ASAP meetings. Because we are a small group, we can avoid the big convention centers and hold meetings at locations to which you normally do not get to go.

These meetings always get rave reviews. With the Louisville meeting, for example, the overall rating, including topics, speakers, and location, was close to 4.5 on a scale of 5. Not atypical for ASAP meetings.

A number of important topics were covered. One was how specialty pharmacy may be the next big thing. We also heard about the important progress being made with pharmacy-specific CPT codes. These AMA-recognized codes are certain to validate pharmacy's billing for professional services. We also learned how document management, particularly for pharmacies servicing long-term care facilities, can not only increase efficiency, but also reduce errors. We got an interesting perspective on AMP and how this is likely to change the business model from a product emphasis to a focus on professional services. E-prescribing was also on the agenda, with the results presented from the pilot programs called for in the Medicare Modernization Act. While there are a few areas that need to be addressed in the long-term care setting, the retail pilots reinforced the viability of e-prescribing. As you might have heard, CMS has a proposed rule out for comment that will eliminate the fax exemption for Part D prescriptions come 2008. Unless CMS receives very convincing comments to the contrary, use of the fax for these prescriptions will no longer be an option.

The meeting also featured a session on bar-code technology, with plenty of good advice offered. Another session looked at the ramifications of the proposed FDA changes to national drug codes.

The ASAP meetings are not all work. In Louisville, we took in Churchill Downs, lunching at Millionaire's Row with a perfect view of the races that followed. This will be a talked-about event for some time to come. Somehow the ASAP meetings always serve up the right balance of good program content and entertainment. Another plus is that they are approved for CE credit. Pharmacists who attend, whether owners of one store or several, are glad they did.

The next meeting will be on January 24-26 at The Ritz-Carlton, Amelia Island, Florida - an oceanfront property that the whole family would enjoy.

That said, you might want to mark your calendar for the January meeting. Details will be posted at the ASAP web site (asapnet.org) as soon as we finalize the program. CT

Bill Lockwood is the publisher of ComputerTalk.