Michele Ritala, King County

Michael Lee, US-Rx Care

Susan Hayes

Ashley Vander Linde, AffirmedRx

Alysha Fluno, Mercer 

Robert T. Taketomo, Ventegra

Sandra Spellmeyer, Port of Seattle

Mark Lyons, Amazon Pharmacy

Shawn Gremminger, National Alliance of Healthcare Purchaser Coalitions

Rachel Means, Sage TPA

Kelvin Richards, Aon

Tim Thomas, Crystal Clear Rx

Driving Accountability and Innovation in Pharmacy Benefit Management

Washington Health Alliance

It's time to solve PBM challenges. Develop actionable strategies that improve value and right-size spend.

Parkview Event Space

<h3> Drug costs are one of the fastest-growing drivers of employer health spending. Specialty therapies, opaque rebates and spread pricing, misaligned incentives between PBMs and plan sponsors, and incomplete data make it hard to spot waste or steer toward better value. This pressure hits budgets and the people who depend on benefits. </h3>Join the Washington Health Alliance and employers, consultants, brokers, and more for this half-day forum that focuses on what employers can do now to manage that pressure. Expect practical levers and real examples rather than theory. Learn from panelists who will take you through how they overcame challenges and found success in the RFP and contracting process.Why come:<ul><li>Hear concise, practical approaches to flip the script on the PBM relationship that you can use immediately.</li><li>Engage directly with Washington’s leading purchasers and decision-makers. The room will be small enough (60+ expected) for real conversations.</li><li>Leave with actionable strategies and next steps to improve value, lower pharmacy spend, and make PBMs more accountable.</li></ul>

<h4>Thank you to our Sponsors:</h4>

Agenda

Welcome & Opening Remarks 

Keynote - Rachel Means, Founder & CEO of Sage TPA

This session will explore how an employer’s aligned values-first approach to the RFP process led to the Big 3 opting out of participating.  Speakers include: Michele Ritala of King County, Tim Thomas of Crystal Clear Rx, and Bob Taketomo of Ventegra. 

An Employer’s Journey to a Values-First Contract

Learn how an employer’s new understanding of the PBM industry prompted them to pursue an RFP to identify a partner that would remove misaligned incentives from their contract. Speakers include Sandra Spellmeyer of Port of Seattle, Ashley Vinder Line of Affirmed Rx and Kelvin Richards of Aon. 

An Employer Case Study: Taking the Ball and Running With It

This closing session will synthesize the day’s discussions and tackle what hasn’t yet been addressed. Speakers include: Michael Lee of US-Rx Care, Mark Lyons of Amazon Pharmacy, Alysha Fluno of Mercer and Shawn Gremminger of the National Alliance of Healthcare Purchaser Coalitions. There will be 15 minutes for audience questions from the day.

Avoiding the Pitfalls: Where Employers can Go Next

Closing Remarks

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