George J. Malmberg, RPh, FACA, FACVP, the pharmacist president and chief executive officer of Wedgewood Pharmacy (Swedesboro, N.J.) was the 55th recipient of the Annual Alumni Award from the Philadelphia College of Pharmacy (PCP) at University of the Sciences. It is the school’s highest alumni recognition, given for outstanding contributions to the profession, science, and mankind.
A 12-person committee of his peers chose him for the honor. Siobhan Duffy, co-chair of the committee, presented the award.
On receiving the award, Malmberg said, “PCP graduates are literally responsible for the existence of the modern pharmaceutical industry. PCP graduates have shaped and continue to shape our profession and its organizations; and PCP graduates are now training the next generation of professionals. To be included among these people is a tremendous honor to me.”
Malmberg received a bachelor of science in pharmacy from PCP in 1972. As co-founder, president and chief executive officer of Wedgewood Pharmacy, he and his wife, executive vice president, Lucy Malmberg, transformed the company from a local community pharmacy they purchased in 1981 into a specialized compounding pharmacy that is now one of the largest in the United States, serving more than 25,000 veterinary and human-health prescribers nationwide.
In 2002, the Malmbergs were leaders of the coalition that argued successfully before the Supreme Court that The Food and Drug Modernization Act of 1997 (FDAMA), which prohibited pharmacists from advertising or promoting compounded drugs, was a violation of their First Amendment rights. In 2005, they were instrumental in forming the International Academy of Compounding Pharmacists' (IACP) public affairs task force, which created an advocacy program centered around Patients and Professionals for Customized Care (P2C2), a web site that provides tools for compounding pharmacy advocates to influence public policy. In 2007, a coalition led by the group prevented Federal legislation, which would have severely restricted access to compounded medications, from being introduced.