Success Stories

Shannon Schultz, owner and lead pharmacist at Nebraska LTC Pharmacy, says an invitation to provide COVID vaccines to patients at the Dialysis Center of Lincoln was a success for the pharmacy, the patients, and the nonprofit. The Lincoln clinic shared its positive experience with CPESN Nebraska pharmacy with other members of the American Society of Nephrology. That groups Kidney Community Vaccination Collaborative is exploring with CPESN Health Equity an opportunity to expand the partnership model. Watch the short video to learn more.

The Elevance/Carelon Medicaid program makes it easier to postively impact patient health, says Dustin Williams, phamacy manager at Tru-Valu Drugs in Sanford, Florida. He shares an outcomes story about a patient who lowered her A1c level from 11 to 9.7 in three months.

Rachel Whitesitte, Clinical Services Manager at Streu's Pharmacy Bay Natural in Green Bay, WI, describes how the Special Purpose Program Medical Billing Supports has helped her increase reimbursement under new medical codes. The CPESN Wisconsin pharmacy is getting paid for clinical services they were providing free with $8K in new revenue for a single code in just 6 months.

Maggy Pharmacy, in northern New York, was among 17 CPESN pharmacies to participate in a statewide grant-funded workforce training program for Community Health Workers. Mark Maggy, pharmacist and co-owner, describes the positive impact for both Maggy Pharmacy technicians and the continuing benefit to patients in their community. CPESN New York was recognized by the quality improvement organization with the 2024 IPRO Quality Award.

CPESN has been named a 2024 Health Quality Innovator of the Year, an annual award presented by Health Quality Innovators (HQI). CPESN partnered with HQI in 2024 to address vaccine hesitancy and improve access in Kansas, Missouri, South Carolina and Virginia. Trained pharmacy teams leveraged community trust to provide education, increase vaccinations and close care gaps. From September 25 to October 30, 2024, 279 clinics administered 12,795 immunizations, saving over $59M in healthcare costs. Each vaccine saved $4,000 in healthcare spending, underscoring the role of pharmacy teams in improving public health.

A second two-year renewal of a medication review program for older adults is the result of CPESN Hawaii's strong overall network performance, says Dayna Wong-Otis, Managing Network Facilitator, The renewal with Hawaii Medical Services Association (HMSA) includes increases in case rates and in the network administration fees.

The expanded UnitedHealthcare Pharmacy Care Hub Program benefits rural patients, and others who may lack transportation or broadband internet service by allowing them to access telehealth visits from CPESN pharmacy locations.The program is currently available to UHC Community Plan members through CPESN pharmacies in Kansas, Virginia, North Carolina, and Florida. Alison Haas, CPESN Director of Value Based Contracting, says the program also allows pharmacy-led services including testing and treatment for minor illness, strep, or flu; as welll as MTM and patient education.

Andrew Wagner, pharmacist and owner at Eagle Grove Pharmacy, says he has seen a lot of different patient needs presented at the rural Iowa pharmacy. But a patient with a painful zip tie stuck on his tooth was a new one. Watch this short video to see how the Eagle Grove staff drew on CPESN training and a "patient first" attitutde for a positive and cost-effective patient outcome,

CPESN Ohio pharmacies are seeing new service opportunities that also expand patient access to care under the CareSource Medicaid MCO payer agreement. In additional to fee-for-service payments, pharmacies can earn bonuses based on overall network performance. Jackie Boyle, a network facilitator and Assoc. Dean, Student Success, Practice Transformation at Northeast Ohio Medical University shares benefits of the partnership.

Lynh Warnken, pharmacist and co-owner of Lamar Plaza Drug Store and Dripping Springs Pharmacy in Austin, TX, describes how a relationship with a local non-profit created an opportunity to hold profitable onsite vaccine clinics for visually-impaired and blind employees. The CPESN® Texas pharmacist is already thinking about other ways the pharmacies might support community members in their efforts to live more independently.

Preliminary data for a diabetes management program with a Medicaid MCO shows that 64% of patients that engaged at least twice with CPESN North Carolina pharmacists maintained or improved their A1c values. Madeline Clark, one of the network facilitators, says participating pharmacists are excited about the opportunity to reach even more patients with an increased budget under the contract renewal.

In partnership with six regional Quality Improvement Organizations, pharmacists and their staffs in 23 CPESN® local networks adminstered nearly 40,000 vaccines to residents and staff of long-term care facilities across the country. Lindsay Christensen, CPESN Minnesota Executive Director, served as program support lead and she shares details in this short video about the more than 600 clinics that expanded access and improved safety in these care settings.

Strong engagement with patients diagnosed asthma or diabetes, and pediatric patients diagnosed with ADD/ADHD led to program renewal with Magnolia Health, the Medicaid MCO in Mississippi. Amy Catherine Baggett, managing network facilitator, says sharing patient impact testimonials and pharmacy results with the MCO also allowed expansion to include collecting HbA1c for diabetes patients.

Thao Doan, pharmacist/owner of Tu Quynh Pharmacy and a CPESN® New York City luminary, says her Vietnamese and Chinese patients benefit by using their Medicare OTC cards to purchase healthy food items and traditional health aids. As Medicare Advantage programs increase benefit amounts, patients can use the dollars to buy certain foods. Doan says focusing on what patients need and use helps them make the most of the benefits and adds revenue for her pharmacy.

Watch this short video to learn more about how CPESN USA's 3,500 pharmacies and 8,000 providers help health plans lower cost, while improving patient health outcomes. And see examples how payer programs are generating revenue for our pharmacies. Pharmacy owners collaborating with other pharmacy owners to generate new revenue streams.

Bob Lomenick, CPESN MIssissippi Lead Luminary and pharmacist/owner of Tyson Drugs in Holly Springs, MS, says his staff piggybacks care gap outreach with med sycn calls to schedule UHC HbA1c and blood pressure checks for Medicaid patients. He shares that and other tips in this short video. Other networks particpating in the gap closure program through Dec. 31 are CPESN Virginia, CPESN Florida, and Pennsylvania Pharmacists Care Network, the CPESN network in Pennsylvania.

Wyatt Walker, CPESN® Louisiana Managing Network Facilitator and pharmacist/owner at Walker's Drug Store in Livonia, LA, says administering COVID-19 at four nursing homes turned a profit of about $20K for his store. The vaccines were administerd under the CPESN partnership with Alliant Health Solutions, a Quality Improvement Organization.

Mariela Silva, a clinical pharmacist at Lino's Pharmacy, encourages other community pharmacies to consider having at least one staff member who can communicate in basic Spanish. The CPESN® Texas pharmacy is located near the Mexico border and serves a large Hispanic population. With Spanish as the second most common language in the U.S., Silva says there is opportunity for most pharmacies to engage their Hispanic patients which can help expand services.

Increased pharmacy engagement with a Medicaid MCO population is the goal for CPESN® North Carolina pharmacies participating in a renewed diabetes management program. Clinical services being provided under the contract med sync and other efforts to increase adherence, as well as regular monitoring of glucose levels. Laura Rhodes, Managing Network Facilitator, hopes the deeper patient engagement and refreshed data will lead to another renewal for 2025.

Dayna Wong-Otis, CPESN® Hawaii Managing Network Facilitator, describes the network's newest payer program with MDX Hawaii. Pharmacies on three of the Hawaiian islands will work with patients enrolled in Medicare Advantage programs to help close adherence gaps associated with STAR measures. The payer has already expressed interest in additional pharmacy services.

Vito Colombo, a first-generation Italian, is co-owner along with his pharmacist wife Elaine of Colombo's Pharmacy in Queens where they are members of CPESN New York City. Colombo says he learned from his father the value of greeting customers and making an effort to understand and speak their language. His Middle Village pharmacy is located in a walking neighborhood, rich in its ethnic mix of Italian, German, Irish, Albanian, Polish, and Spanish-speaking people. His tip for other CPESN pharmacists: Using Google Translate to help a customer feel comfortable and understood goes a long way in building trust.

Patient trust allows community pharmacists in Tennessee's two networks to complete Health Risk Assessments with UnitedHealthcare's hard-to-reach members. Amber Suthers, CPESN Tennessee, Managing Network Facilitator, says it's rewarding to see payers recognize community pharmacy's value in caring for patients. The program is open to all CPESN Tennessee and CPESN Northeast Tennessee pharmacies.

Community Health Worker Hailey Yancey pulled back the curtain with a simple Excel workbook that allows the MediCenter Pharmacy team in Jackson, Missouri to see the rewards of their outreach efforts. In 2024 to date, the pharmacy has increased vaccine administration by 186% over the same period in 2023. Christina Hart, pharmacist and co-owner, says the information motivates the staff, and leads to higher goals.

Inpatient admissions were 33% points lower for high-risk Medicaid patients engaged with CPESN community pharmacists during a pilot outreach program, compared with those members not reached by local pharmacists. Results of the claims data lookback study are reported in research released by the Elevance Health Public Policy Institute. Lindsey Ludwig, CPESN Iowa Executive Director, describes the impact of the two-year program in this short video. Elevance Health/CarelonRx currently has programs in 11 CPESN networks with plans to add more this year.

CPESN® Maryland Managing Network Facilitator Dixie Leikach shares insights for understanding the upcoming Jewish High Holidays, and tips for supporting pharmacy patients during fasting, and schedule changes associated with the holidays. She also highlights opportunities when Jewish patients may be more open to conversations about preventative care, and overall health management.

Strong performance by CPESN Minnesota pharmacies statewide led to an expanded UCare Minnesota contract. The gap closure program has been expanded to 16 areas of care, including five care coordination measures.

The Corporation for Ohio Appalachian Development (COAD) has expanded its Pathways program statewide, opening opportunities for CPESN pharmacies to receive and make care coordination referrals through county and regional HUBs. Pharmacies need to train or hire certified Community Health Workers and complete a credentialing process. Medicaid is the primary payment source for CHW services.

Veronica Riera-Gilley, a board certified geriatric pharmacist, describes how she and the Medicine Shoppe team in Sherman, TX Medicare Part D patients. Watch this short video to learn more about working with a senior population.

CPESN® USA has partnerships with six regional Quality Improvement Organizations for pharmacies in 23 networks to help long-term care facilities increase current COVID-19 vaccination rates for residents and staff. Cindy Warriner, a CPESN Virginia facilitator, and a senior pharmacist consultant with Health Quality Innovators, says the partnerships showcases for all federal health decision makers the value that community pharmacy brings to 65+ patients.

Laura Rhodes, CPESN Florida Managing Network Facilitator, says the network is off to a strong start with pharmacy outreach to close care gaps for plan-identified Medicaid patients.