DEPARTMENT OF VETERANS AFFAIRS PHARMACY PROGRAM WITH EMPHASIS ON OTC DRUGS, MEDICAL SUPPLIES AND DIETARY SUPPLE- MENTS HEARING BEFORE THE SUBCOMMITTEE ON HOSPITALS AND HEALTH CARE OF THE COMMITTEE ON VETERANS’ AFFAIRS HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES ONE HUNDRED FOURTH CONGRESS SECOND SESSION JUNE 11, 1996 Printed for the use of the Committee on Veterans’ Affairs Serial No. 104-24 ce U.S. GOVERNMENT PRINTING OFFICE 26-834 CC WASHINGTON : 1996 For sale by the U.S. Government Printing Office ‘Superintendent of Documents, Congressional Sales Office, Washington, DC 20402 ISBN 0-16-053511-5COMMITTEE ON VETERANS’ AFFAIRS BOB STUMP, Arizona, Chairman CHRISTOPHER H. SMITH, New Jersey G.V. (SONNY) MONTGOMERY, Mississippi MICHAEL BILIRAKIS, Florida LANE EVANS, Illinois FLOYD SPENCE, South Carolina JOSEPH P. KENNEDY Il, Massachusetta ‘TIM HUTCHINSON, Arizona CHET EDWARDS, Texas TERRY EVERETT, Alabama BOB CLEMENT, Tennessee STEVE BUYER, Indiana BOB FILNER, California JACK QUINN, New York FRANK TEJEDA, Texas SPENCER BACHUS, Alabama LUIS V. GUTIERREZ, Illinois CLIFF STEARNS, Florida SCOTTY BAESLER, Kentucky BOB NEY, Ohio SANFORD BISHOP, Georgia JON FOX, Pennsylvania JAMES E. CLYBURN, South Carolina MIKE FLANAGAN, Illinois CORRINE BROWN, Florida BOB BARR, Georgia MIKE DOYLE, Pennsylvania JERRY WELLER, Ilinois FRANK MASCARA, Pennsylvania J.D. HAYWORTH, Arkansas WES COOLEY, Oregon DAN SCHAEFER, Colorado Cart D. CommeNator, Chief Counsel and Staff Director SUBCOMMITTEE ON HOSPITALS AND HEALTH CARE TIM HUTCHINSON, Arkansas, Chairman BOB STUMP, Arizona CHET EDWARDS, Texas CHRISTOPHER H. SMITH, New Jersey JOSEPH P. KENNEDY II, Massachusetts MICHAEL BILIRAKIS, Florida BOB CLEMENT, Tennessee FLOYD SPENCE, South Carolina FRANK TEJEDA, Tex JACK QUINN, New York LUIS V. GUTIERREZ, Illinois SPENCER BACHUS, Alabama SCOTTY BAESLER, Kentucky CLIFF STEARNS, Florida SANFORD BISHOP, Georgia BOB NEY, Ohio CORRINE BROWN, Florida JON FOX, Penneyvania ‘MIKE DOYLE, Pennsylvania MIKE FLANAGAN, Illinois a)CONTENTS OPENING STATEMENTS Chairman Hutchinson .. Hon. Chet Edwards . pee Prepared statement of Congressman Edwards . Hon. Sanford Bishop .... een WITNESSES Baine, David P., Director, Health Care Delivery and Quality Issues, Health, Education, and Human Services Division, U'S. General Accounting Office, accompanied by: Walter Gembacz, Senior Evaluator, Health Care Delivery and Quality Issues, Health, Education, and Human Services Division; and Paul Reynolds, Assistant Director, Health Care Delivery and Quality Is- sues, Health, Education, and Human Services Division, U.S. General Ac- counting Office .... Prepared statement of Mr. Baine : Ogden, John E., MS, FASHP, Director, VA Pharmacy Service, Department of Veterans Affairs, accompanied by: Gary D. Brown, Director, VA Medical Genter, Big Spring, TX, James A. Christian, FACHE, Director, VA Medical Center, Asheville, NC; and Leonard Washington, Jr., Director, VA Medical Center, Lebanon, PA ecco. : : : Prepared statement of Mr. Ogden . MATERIAL SUBMITTED FOR THE RECORD ee ee ee Chairman Hutchinson to U.S. General Accounting Office .. Chairman Hutchinson to Department of Veterans Affairs Congressman Gutierrez to Department of Veterans Affairs . (a 19 58 63 7