Community health with a patient-first mindset in specialty pharmacy

The following is excerpted from Becker’s Payer Issues newsletter  published by Becker’s Healthcare in August, 2023.¹ It is authored by Paul Marchetti, President of CarelonRx, and Dan Mandoli, President of Specialty Pharmacy for CarelonRx, a division within the Carelon brand and Elevance Health’s pharmacy benefit manager. 

Healthcare leaders can improve community health by adopting a patient-first mindset in specialty pharmacy

We know specialty medications, which treat complex illnesses, account for 55% of total drug spending in the United States, according to IQVIA’s recent report, “The Use of Medicines in the U.S. 2022.”² That’s up 28% from a decade ago. 

Specialty medications are expanding³ to cover a range of disease states, including oncology, autoimmune, dermatology, and rare diseases. It’s a rapidly changing landscape and our most vulnerable patients, those living with complex illnesses and navigating specialty medications, need our steadfast support as healthcare leaders. We understand this need well at CarelonRx. 

Putting people first and taking action

We can take actionable steps daily toward improving healthcare for our members who rely on specialty medications and ultimately contribute to community health. This begins by having a patient-first mindset. For example:

• Drive affordability. Each decision we make as leaders in healthcare should work toward lowering costs for patients and members.
  
  
• Increase accessibility to your experts. An expert answer in that moment can further medication adherence, prevent adverse reactions, and promote patient safety.
  
  
• Collaborate within healthcare. Patients with complex illnesses often need the guidance and support of many professionals simultaneously.

As leaders in healthcare, we have the unique responsibility to make positive, lasting change together that will benefit patients of today and future generations to come.

Read the full article published in Becker's Payer Issues, here .