% >> Frederica: THE WORK FORCE
% SHORTAGE IMPACTING THE LION'S
% SHARE OF THE JOB MARKET IS
% SLAMMING PHARMACIES.
% WITH THE ADDED WORKLOAD OF
% PROVIDING VACCINATIONS AND
% BOOSTER SHOTS, THE CRISIS LEVEL
% SHORTAGE OF PHARMACISTS AND
% TECHNICIANS IS LEAVING SOME TO
% TURN PATIENTS AWAY OR WAIT DAYS
% FOR A PRESCRIPTION TO BE FILLED.
% THE SHORTAGE COULD BE
% ALLEVIATED.
% THE PHARMACY SOCIETY OF
% WISCONSIN SAYS MORE THAN 200
% PHARMACISTS HAVE EXPERIENCED
% SEVERE DELAYS IN THEIR LICENSING
% PROCESSING PREVENTING THEM FROM
% WORKING.
% IT'S NOT JUST PHARMACISTS.
% NURSES, THERAPISTS, AND OTHER
% PROFESSIONS ARE FEELING THE
% FRUSTRATION.%FOR ANSWERS AS T
O WHY THIS IS
% HAPPENING, WE TURN TO THE NEW
% SECRETARY DESIGNEE OF THE
% DEPARTMENT OF SAFETY AND
% PROFESSIONAL SERVICES IN CHARGE
% OF APPROVING THESE LICENSES, DAN
% HERETH, JOINING US NOW, AND
% THANK YOU VERY MUCH FOR BEING
% HERE.%>> ABSOLUTELY.
% THANK YOU, FREDERICA, FOR
% ALLOWING ME SOME TIME TO JOIN
% YOU TODAY.
% THIS ISSUE IS CERTAINLY ONE
% THAT'S NEAR AND DEAR TO OUR%
HEARTS AT THE AGENCY.
% LICENSING FOLKS THROUGHOUT
% WISCONSIN IS A RESPONSIBILITY
% THAT WE TAKE INCREDIBLY
% SERIOUSLY.%YOU KNOW, WE ARE C
ERTAINLY IN
% UNCERTAIN TIMES, AND HAVE BEEN
% FOR A FEW YEARS NOW, AND THE
% MOST RECENT IT RATION OF --
% ITERATION OF THAT IS WORK FORCE
% SHORTAGES.%WE AT THE DEPARTME
NT EXPERIENCED
% THOSE.%THOSE OUT THERE IN THE
% COMMUNITIES ARE EXPERIENCING
% THOSE.
% YOU KNOW, RECORD HIGH LABOR
% FORCE PARTICIPATION, RECORD LOW
% UNEMPLOYMENT, THOSE ARE GOOD
% THING, BUT THAT LEAVES US WITH
% NEW CHALLENGES TO FACE, AND,
% CERTAINLY, WE'RE WORKING TOWARDS
% THAT.
% AT OUR AGENCY, WE WORK WITH OVER
% 240 UNIQUE CREDENTIALS.
% OVER THE LAST SIX YEARS,
% LICENSING VOLUME HAS BEEN
% INCREASING DRAMATICALLY EVERY
% YEAR.
% OVER 100% INCREASE IN THAT
% TIMEFRAME, AND WHILE WE ARE
% PROUD OF THE PROGRESS WE'VE BEEN
% MAKING AS OF THIS YEAR, WE'RE
% ISSUING LICENSING 40% FASTER
% THAN WE'VE EVER ISSUED THEM IN
% THE HISTORY OF OUR DEPARTMENT.
% WE ARE LICENSING MORE PEOPLE
% ANNUALLY THAN WE'VE EVER
% LICENSED IN THE HISTORY OF THE
% DEPARTMENT.%WE CERTAINLY KNO
W THAT THERE'S
% MORE WORK TO DO, AND PART OF
% THAT WORK IS OUR BUDGET, AND SO
% THE LAST TWO BUDGET CYCLES, WE
% REQUESTED SOME ADDITIONAL
% POSITIONS.
% THOSE REQUESTS CERTAINLY HAVEN'T
% BEEN FULLY MET, AND WE'RE GOING
% TO REQUEST MORE POSITIONS IN
% THIS BUDGET CYCLE BECAUSE, AS
% YOU WELL KNOW, SERVING OUR FOLKS
% HERE IN THE STATE OF WISCONSIN%
IS A TOP PRIORITY.
% >> Frederica: SO I WANT TO
% CIRCLE BACK TO SOME OF THE
% POINTS YOU'VE MADE, BUT, FIRST,
% WHAT CAN YOU TELL PEOPLE WANTING
% TO WORK IN THEIR FIELD, BUT
% THEY'RE STILL WAITING FOR THEIR
% LICENSE?%>> YOU KNOW, MY BEST
ADVICE IS
% ALWAYS TO LOG IN TO THE SYSTEM,
% PARTICULARLY FOR FOLKS WHO
% APPLIED IN OUR BRAND NEW SYSTEM
% LICENSEE.
% AGAIN, THE -- THAT TECHNOLOGY
% COMBINED WITH SOME OF OUR
% EFFORTS INTERNALLY ALLOWED US TO
% ISSUE LICENSES 40% FASTER, BUT
% WITH THE UPTICK IN VOLUME, WE
% DEFINITELY NEED MORE HELP IN
% POSITIONS TO MOVE THAT FORWARD.
% >> Frederica: IN FACT, YOU
% DESCRIBE HAVING BEEN CRITICALLY
% SHORT STAFFED IN THE AGENCY.
% DESCRIBE HOW MANY PEOPLE ARE
% HANDLING WHAT KIND OF VOLUME OF
% APPLICATIONS AND INQUIRIES.
% >> YEAH.
% ABSOLUTELY.
% SO AS OF ABOUT SIX YEARS AGO,
% THERE WAS ON AN ANNUAL BASIS
% ANYWHERE FROM 25,000 TO 30,000
% LICENSES THAT WERE APPLIED FOR.
% IN THE RECENT BIENNIUM, THAT
% NUMBER CREPT UP TO OVER 60,000.
% UNFORTUNATELY, JUST LIKE THE
% LABOR SHORTAGES HITTING
% EMPLOYERS ACROSS THE STATE, IT'S
% HITTING OUR AGENCY, TOO, AND
% SHORT TERM EMPLOYMENT IS NOT%
SOMETHING THAT MAKES SENSE FOR A
% LOT OF PEOPLE IN THIS
% ENVIRONMENT, SO THAT'S WHY IN
% OUR RECENT BUDGET, WE'RE
% REQUESTING AN ADDITIONAL 30FTE
% TO ALLOW US BOTH TO COMMUNICATE
% BETTER WITH APPLICANTS WHO HAVE
% QUESTIONS OR NEED HELP MOVING
% THROUGH THE PROCESS, BUT ALSO,
% THEN, TO PROCESS THINGS.
% >> Frederica: SO THE AGENCY
% WENT TO AN ONLINE LICENSE
% APPLICATION PROCESS, I BELIEVE,
% IT WAS JUST THIS PAST SPRING,
% BUT THE PHARMACY SOCIETY TELLS
% US THEY'VE GOT 200 APPLICATIONS
% IN THE PIPELINE RIGHT NOW SAYING
% THE NEW SYSTEM DOES NOT SEEM TO
% HAVE HELPED THE DELAYS.
% WHAT'S YOUR RESPONSE TO THAT?
% >> YEAH.
% YOU KNOW, I THINK AT THIS POINT
% IN THE YEAR, THERE'S ALWAYS
% GOING TO BE LICENSE HOLDERS IN
% SOME -- OR PERSPECTIVE LICENSE
% HOLDERS IN SOME STAGE OF THE
% PROCESS.
% LICENSING IS -- IS, AS YOU MAY
% BE AWARE, NOT NECESSARILY A
% VENDING MACHINE-TYPE PROCESS.
% IT IS ITERATIVE AND INVOLVES
% MULTIPLE STEPS DEPENDENT ON ONE
% ANOTHER, AND SO WITH THE NEW
% SYSTEM, I CAN TELL YOU THAT THE
% NUMBERS BARE OUT WE'RE LICENSING
% PEOPLE 40% FASTER, SO WE WENT
% FROM A 76-DAY AVERAGE
% HISTORICALLY DOWN TO NOW A
% 45-DAY AVERAGE IN 2022.
% >> Frederica: IT'S FUNNY, THE
% 76-DAY AVERAGE OR THE 45-DAY
% AVERAGE, I MEAN, WE HAD BEEN
% HEARING REPORTS OF PEOPLE
% WAITING MONTHS FOR THEIR
% LICENSE.
% >> YEAH.
% YOU KNOW, I HEAR THOSE THINGS
% TOO, AND I FIND OFTENTIMES WHEN
% PEOPLE COME TO ME WITH
% PARTICULAR CONCERNS, AND I GET
% E-MAILS DIRECTLY FROM APPLICANTS
% ASKING FOR ASSISTANCE, THAT THE
% REALITY IS OFTENTIMES IF WE WERE
% WAITING MONTHS, THERE ARE A
% VARIETY OF FACTORS THAT IMPACT
% THAT, WHETHER IT'S TIME IT TAKES
% TO MOVE THROUGH THE TESTING
% PROCESS WITH NATIONAL EXAMS OR
% IT'S TIME THAT IT TAKES TO GET
% DOCUMENTATION TO THE DEPARTMENT,%
OUR GOAL AT THE DEPARTMENT IS TO
% MOVE THROUGH THE INCOMING
% INFORMATION AS FAST AS
% RESPONSIBLE, AND THE REALITY IS,
% AS I'VE SAID SEVERAL TIMES, WE
% NEED ADDITIONAL STAFF TO DO
% THAT.
% NOW, IN TERMS OF THOSE FOLKS,
% THE OTHER PART OF THAT EQUATION
% IS AT THE END OF THE DAY, SOME
% FOLKS NEED ADDITIONAL ASSISTANCE
% TO MOVE THROUGH THE PROCESS.
% IT'S NOT ALWAYS CLEAR TO
% EVERYBODY WHAT THE STEPS ARE OR
% WHAT MAY BE THE MISSING PIECE
% FOR THEM, AND THAT'S WHY THE
% COMMUNICATIONS ASPECT IS SO
% CRITICAL.%WE HAVE, AND WE'VE
ASKED FOR
% STAFF IN THE PASS, WE HAVE SIX
% FTE TO ANSWER ROUGHLY 5,000 TO
% 10,000 PHONE CALLS IN A GIVEN
% WEEK.
% OBVIOUSLY, THAT MATH DOES NOT%
WORK.
% WE REQUESTED STAFF TO DO JUST
% THAT IN PAST BUDGETS AND WILL
% REQUEST THAT STAFF AGAIN IN THE
% NEXT BUDGET.%>> Frederica: SO
IF
% SHORT-STAFFED HOSPITALS CAN'T
% PUT NURSES BACK TO WORK AND
% PHARMACISTS CAN'T POTENTIALLY
% FILL PRESCRIPTIONS IN A TIMELY
% FASHION, OR THERAPISTS CAN'T
% STOP THEIR NEW JOB BECAUSE THEY
% ARE WAITING FOR THEIR LICENSE,
% WHAT KIND OF BURDEN DOES THIS
% CONTINUING KIND OF LICENSING LOG
% JAM PUT ON THOSE WHO NEED CARE?
% >> YOU KNOW, CERTAINLY, IT'S
% SOMETHING, AGAIN, AS I STATED
% WHEN WE STARTED THE
% CONVERSATION, THAT WE ALL TAKE
% PERSONALLY.
% SERVING THE CITIZENS OF
% WISCONSIN IS A TOP PRIORITY, AND
% THAT'S WHY WE MOVE QUICKLY TO
% IMPLEMENT THE NEW LICENSEE,
% WHICH AIDED US IN DROPPING
% LICENSE TIMES SIGNIFICANTLY,
% AND, YOU KNOW, IT'S GOING TO
% TAKE ALL OF US WORKING TOGETHER
% TO ALLOW THE AGENCY TO SERVE THE
% FOLKS IN THE WAY THEY NEED TO BE
% SERVED.
% >> Frederica: ALL RIGHT,
% SECRETARY DESIGNE, DAN HERETH,
% THANK YOU VERY MUCH.%>> ABSOL
UTELY, THANK YOU.