Armada Gathers 1,000 Attendees at its 5th Specialty Pharmacy Summit

Armada Health Care (Short Hills, NJ) is a group purchasing organization with a mission: to create a distinct specialty pharmacy channel in a marketplace where manufacturers, distributors, pharmacies and pharmacy benefit managers are all angling for a piece of the pie. If its 5th Annual Summit (Las Vegas, March 10-13) is any indication, it is succeeding at least in drawing together many smaller specialty pharmacies, specialty distributors and home health providers into its network, called the Armada Specialty Pharmacy Network (ASPN).

ASPN works the way most GPOs do, by bundling the demand from a number of smaller organizations into a group purchase, the better to obtain favorable pricing and terms from suppliers. In the specialty pharmaceutical channel, a variety of distribution pathways are being explored, ranging from working with conventional wholesalers and GPOs, to specialty arms of chain pharmacies and PBMs. The need for considerable add-on services for patient care, drug administration and reimbursement management, though, complicates the specialty distribution process. Armada’s business plan is to attract specialty pharmacies through attractive pricing, while offering a standardized, comprehensive range of services to specialty pharmaceutical manufacturers.

LAWRENCE IRENE, CEO

“We are thrilled with the turnout of this year’s Armada Specialty Pharmacy Summit. The overwhelming interest shared by so many validates our vision for the specialty pharmacy channel,” said Lawrence Irene, CEO of Armada. “We look forward to continuing to expand our specialty pharmacy channel management programs in 2009 and beyond.” PC