McKesson Corporation : Pharmacies Gain Competitive Edge With New McKesson Alternate Site Pharmacy Program

McKesson offers customized solutions to long-term care, home infusion and specialty pharmacie

, a Fortune 15 healthcare-services and information technology company, today announced McKesson Alternate Site Pharmacy, a comprehensive portfolio of cost- and time-saving solutions for alternate site pharmacies. These customized solutions are designed for pharmacies specializing in the unique needs of the rapidly growing alternate site market: long-term care, home infusion, institutions, mail order and other settings

With more than 18 million patients receiving care in alternate site facilities - a 20 percent increase between 2004 to 2008, according to a study by the National Health Policy Forum and Sanofi Aventis - the need for alternate site pharmacy services is escalating. Recognizing this need, pharmacies across the U.S. are beginning to offer closed-door alternate site services or to focus exclusively on alternate site customers

"Alternate site pharmacies have significant opportunities for growth," said Pam Burch, vice president, McKesson U.S. Pharmaceutical. "But these opportunities also bring unique challenges, such as complex regulatory shifts, business requirements and difficult price pressures. McKesson Alternate Site Pharmacy provides pharmacists and pharmacy administrators with solutions tailored to their specific needs so they can deliver better service to their customers, and ultimately, better care."

Solutions That Can Impact Pharmacies' Bottom Line

McKesson's Alternate Site Pharmacy includes products and services tailored for alternate site pharmacy to help with:

• Revenue enhancement and cost savings
• Claims reimbursement and reconciliation
• Inventory management
• Medication safety and packaging
• Process improvement
• Regulatory change managemen

Drug costs are an enormous challenge to long-term care and other alternate site organizations. Pharmacies can play a key role in helping these organizations manage costs and streamline reimbursement.

From a generics drug purchasing program specifically designed for alternate site pharmacies, to comprehensive reimbursement support, to robust reporting and consulting, products offered through McKesson Alternate Site Pharmacy directly address pharmacies' need for cost and labor efficiency to pass on drug cost savings to customers.

With the generics program alone, McKesson customers are achieving an average of 3 to 6 percent savings overall on generic medications, Burch noted.

"McKesson's expertise and capabilities are perfectly matched to our needs," said Samit Banjeree, PharmD and CEO, Senior Care Pharmacy Services, a multi-location operator that provides medication services to approximately 5,500 patients at skilled nursing facilities in California. "McKesson helped us reduce our inventory and related costs by $100,000. Yet, because we get what we need exactly when we need it, resident care never, ever suffers. And the McKesson team is helping us shift to more generics, which offer savings we can pass on to our customers."

In addition, enabling dramatic efficiency and productivity improvements is a huge part of the savings McKesson can help pharmacies achieve. "Through our McKesson Alternate Site Pharmacy Solutions we've helped customers such as Americare Pharmacy increase their inventory turns by 80 percent, and Allcare Pharmacy improve their packaging productivity by 20 percent," said Burch.

Navigating a Changing Regulatory Environment

Constantly changing regulations pose a challenge to alternate care pharmacies. According to the American Society of Consultant Pharmacists, long-term care faces more challenges from the regulatory environment than in any other healthcare setting. The federal government mandates rigorous standards for medication management in skilled nursing facilities, and regulations at federal and state levels have continued to change dramatically over the past few years.

"In addition to handling priorities such as adapting to the short cycle dispensing mandate and the likely increased labor costs it will trigger, we are also managing a greater regulatory load relative to Medicare audits," said Banerjee. "McKesson has been invaluable in helping to manage regulatory priorities without disrupting our pharmacy's day-to-day operations."

Meet BoPSM. McKesson's Business of Pharmacy.

Currently helping more than 800 alternate site pharmacies nationwide, the Business of Pharmacy (BoP) is McKesson's evidence-based approach to optimizing the financial, operational and clinical performance of alternate site pharmacies. Harnessing McKesson's superior distribution, BoP extends across the entire business of alternate site pharmacy and provides the services and solutions to help pharmacies improve profitability, streamline process, better serve their customers, and ultimately provide greater patient care. For more information, please visit .

About McKesson

McKesson Corporation, currently ranked 15th on the FORTUNE 500, is a healthcare services and information technology company dedicated to making the business of healthcare run better. We partner with payers, hospitals, physician offices, pharmacies, pharmaceutical companies and others across the spectrum of care to build healthier organizations that deliver better care to patients in every setting. McKesson helps its customers improve their financial, operational, and clinical performance with solutions that include pharmaceutical and medical-surgical supply management, healthcare information technology, and business and clinical services. For more information, visit .