As hospitals and health systems increase investments in the specialty pharmacy industry, leaders should be nimble in their payer and drugmaker relationships, according to McKesson.
In a recent post, the company's health systems editorial team recommended eight focus areas for specialty pharmacy leaders:
1. Policy: Stay on top of policy changes and their potential effects on specialty pharmacy services.
2. Payer: Analyze reimbursement changes, collaborate with partners and consultants, and reevaluate contracts for an advantage in negotiations.
3. Drugmakers: Ensure your organization has enough personnel to meet pharmaceutical companies' criteria. These workers will guarantee compliance rates are met and help manage limited distribution drugs.
4. Provider: The best specialty pharmacies foster the evolution of the specialty pharmacist's role, including supporting collaboration agreements with clinicians.
5. Pharmacy: "Specialty pharmacy is poised to set a new standard of care for outpatients pharmacies," McKesson said, and the American Society of Health-System Pharmacists' high-value pharmacy enterprise framework could uncover growth opportunities.
6. Processes: Leverage relationships with partners to level up technology and automation.
7. Patient care: High maturity specialty pharmacies account for administrative and workflow challenges that come with expanded service lines, and automation and other streamlining strategies are vital when providing equitable care.
8: Patient advocacy: Help lower the cost of care and effectively communicate those successes to assist the specialty pharmacy's budget.