Pharmacy Buyers Collaborative

Prescription drug costs, shortages and access to medications continue to plague hospital and retail pharmacies. Often due to shortcomings in production quality assurance or scarcity of active pharmaceutical ingredient, medication shortages have disrupted pharmaceutical supply-chain workflow for over a decade. With limited relief on the horizon and generic manufacturers leaving the market due to narrow profitability, inventory management is of paramount concern for pharmacies. In an effort to mitigate provider or patient impact, RWJBH Pharmacy Buyers have employed best in class buying practices through systematic purchasing processes and enhanced communication.

Membership

Chair: Corporate Director 340B Program
Members: Corporate Vice President of Integrated Pharmacy Services, Pharmacy Buyers, System Director Pharmaceutical Procurement, Clinical Distribution Manager, 340B Analyst

Meetings

The Pharmacy Buyers Collaborative will have monthly update calls and biannual meetings.

Collaborative Purpose

The Pharmacy Buyers Collaborative initiated in 2017 as a semi-annual meeting for all RWJBarnabas Health pharmaceutical procurement stakeholders. Corporate Pharmacy identified value in facilitating increased communication for the collaborative. Therefore, to supplement existing semiannual meetings, the collaborative implemented a brief monthly call to quickly address high ticket items. The collaborative continued its execution of a centralized hub for high dollar, high volume, shorted, and unique medications. Continuing its goal for 2020, the collaborative remains resolute in attaining the lowest medication pricing possible, while ensuring RWJBH patients are not clinically impacted by pharmaceutical manufacturer shortages. Additionally, the decision was made to centralize the annual purchase of influenza vaccines to help mitigate excessive purchasing. Qualitas Pharmacy continues to serve as the health system’s centralized hub. The service line was renamed in 2019 as RWJBH Consolidated Pharmacy Services. For 2021, the collaborative will continue to execute its focused centralization mission, while anticipating the introduction of additional facilities to RWJBH, potentially before the close of 2020.

Pharmacy Buyers Collaborative Membership