Hospital CCO appointed to AHA group

Quickenden is part of the Pharmacy and Drug Policy Work Group

Kari Quickenden, Chief Clinical Officer at Memorial Hospital of Sweetwater County, recently was invited to participate as a member of the American Hospital Association’s Pharmacy and Drug Policy Work Group.

The group consists of 10-15 pharmacy leaders from a variety of geographical areas and from hospitals of different sizes and types. They will tackle the many challenges now faced in the pharmacy world from implementation of the Inflation Reduction Act to coverage of GLP-1 drugs to 340B program reforms, and more.

“It is an exceptional honor to serve on this work group with pharmacy leaders from across the country,” Quickenden said. “It is an opportunity as a rural healthcare facility to voice the unique challenges we face.”

The pharmacy and drug space has been a critical point of policy debate over recent years with the Inflation Reduction Act, third-party Pharmacy Benefit Manager reform, and efforts to reduce the scope of the 340B program, to name just a few, said Bharath Krishnamurthy, Director of Health Analytics and Policy at the AHA, where she leads policy work on pharmacy issues.

“While the AHA already plays an important advocacy role in these and other pharmacy/drug policy issues, we recognize that we are now at a critical juncture,” Krishnamurthy said. “We anticipate that pharmacy and drug pricing issues will be key focus areas for both Congress and the Administration over the next several years where the hospital voice will be critical in shaping future policy.”

This work group will help the AHA advocate for policies that are in the best interest of hospitals and the patients and communities they serve.

The goal of the work group is four-fold:

• Identify pharmacy and drug policy issues that the AHA should be engaged in and help educate AHA staff.
• Provide the AHA with advice and guidance on key pharmacy and drug policy issues that are of critical importance to hospitals and the patients/communities they serve.
• Help facilitate and strengthen existing partnerships between the AHA and local, state, and national pharmacy groups.
• Help us communicate the impact of these issues by promoting AHA research/reports, answering surveys, and participating in webinars, meetings, and conferences, as needed.