JEFFERSON, La. —  Admiral Brett P. Giroir, assistant secretary for health at the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS),  visited LaPharmacy, a member of the Health Mart franchise in Jefferson, Louisiana, which is part of the greater New Orleans area, to recognize pharmacist Stacey LaBorde and his team for COVID-19 test collection efforts in his community. LaPharmacy is a locally owned pharmacy and wellness center focused on delivering the very best in personalized service, “dedicated to your health and wellbeing.”

LaBorde is founder and CEO of LaPharmacy. In 2006, he graduated from Xavier University with a Doctor of Pharmacy degree and began his work as a pharmacist. With 22 years of pharmacy experience, LaBorde wanted to create a community pharmacy that includes wellness and preventative solutions in addition to retail and compounded pharmaceuticals.

Admiral Giroir and pharmacist LaBorde

“Pharmacists like Stacey LaBorde are the unsung heroes helping patients in at-risk and underserved areas,” shared Eyad Farah, president of Health Mart and Health Mart Atlas. “We’re thrilled their resolute commitment to their communities has been recognized at the highest levels of HHS.”

LaBorde and his team

Giroir, also a native of New Orleans, is a pediatrician and four-star admiral in the U.S. Public Health Service Commissioned Corps. He was appointed assistant secretary for health under the Trump Administration in February 2018. He serves as the HHS secretary’s principal public health and science adviser. In 2020, he assumed the additional roles of the director of the U.S. coronavirus diagnostic testing and the U.S. representative on the World Health Organization Executive Board.