Actionable Insights

Driving pharmacy financial transparency

A regional, nonprofit network with more than 1,400 staffed beds across seven hospitals recognized that pharmacy services represented a significant opportunity—not only for supply expense management, but for broader strategic alignment across the enterprise. While there were efforts already in motion, leadership sought to go further. They engaged HealthTrust’s Pharmacy Solutions team to help transform the way their pharmacy department approached financial transparency, operational efficiency and long-term sustainability.

The opportunity

The network’s pharmacy leadership team had already made strides in key areas, but like many integrated delivery networks (IDNs), they were seeking a clearer, more holistic view of their financial operations. Gaining that level of transparency is no small feat, especially when trying to align pharmacy data with how the C-suite interprets systemwide performance.

“Financial transparency is being able to articulate every aspect of a service line’s performance—from expenditures and reimbursements to savings opportunities and revenue capture,” says Aigner George, PharmD, AVP, Advisory & Pharmacy Solutions. “Without that visibility, you’re managing in the dark. The fantastic pharmacy leadership team had already captured a lot of data. The initial challenges were in alignment, data analysis and translating data into something meaningful for system executives.”

Leadership wanted to better understand its pharmacy spend and align it with broader financial and operational priorities—particularly around 340B optimization, biosimilars adoption and site-of-care strategies.

Customizing the roadmap

The HealthTrust Pharmacy Solutions team collaborated closely with pharmacy leaders to conduct a detailed assessment of financial reporting, procurement practices and supply expense categories. Together, they tailored a roadmap to generate both short- and long-term ROI and began implementation over the six-month engagement.

Key components of the engagement included:

• • Formulary optimization: Opportunities were identified in biosimilars adoption and 340B utilization. A payer-driven biosimilars financial impact calculator was developed to help the team visualize the effects of formulary changes.
  • Financial visibility: A pharmacy supply expense dashboard was introduced, providing monthly reporting and spend categorization through aligned sub-accounts on the General Ledger. This allowed leaders to better track and communicate performance metrics at both the department and enterprise levels.
  • Procurement & supply chain efficiencies: The team initiated consignment consolidation efforts focused on ensuring that they could sustain the work long after the formal project ended. “We always aim to leave members with a structure they can own and tools they can use on their own terms,” says George. “Our team is really good at keeping lines of communication open.”

3 Steps to Significant Savings & a Clearer View

Financial transparency isn’t just a goal—it’s a discipline. HealthTrust’s Pharmacy Solutions team suggests leaders looking to elevate their organization’s approach start by asking these important questions:

Do we have access to all the data that impacts our financial performance?
Without a full picture of expenditures, revenue & savings, it’s difficult to identify what’s working & what’s not.

Do we understand how our executive leadership team wants to receive & interpret data?
Alignment depends on speaking a common language & tailoring insights to resonate with key stakeholders.

Can we clearly articulate our department’s financial story?
If pharmacy leaders don’t understand their supply expenses, no one else will.

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