Managed Care Pharmacy Practice: A Pharmacist's Perspective

Managed Care Pharmacy is a fascinating, complex, exciting subspecialty. Outside of its own space, it is praised, reviled, and usually misunderstood. Whatever your opinion, this book is likely to change it. Managed care pharmacy is a key player in the U.S. health care system and, we hope, part of the solution to its many problems.

Managed care pharmacy touches a variety of disciplines: drug information, clinical practice, pharmacy administration, quality management, actuarial science, health economics, health law, regulatory affairs, health policy, informatics, and more. Career paths in managed care are varied and rapidly changing. John Watkins, a veteran managed care pharmacist, explains the history and practice of managed care pharmacy and shares insights from almost a half century of pharmacy experience.

CHAPTERS:

PART I: BACKGROUND

How Health Care Became Unaffordable 

Health Insurance and Managed Care       

The Health Care Ecosystem

PART II: MANAGED CARE PHARMACY BASICS

Population Health Management

Evidence-Based Medicine

Health Technology Assessment

The Pharmacy and Therapeutics Committee

Formulary and Utilization Management

Measuring Value

Managing Quality

Managing Government Programs

PART III: CURRENT ISSUES IN MANAGED CARE

Biosimilars

Value and Affordability

High-Cost Cures

Personalized Medicine and Genetics

Managed Care Ethics: Limited Resources

Managed Care Ethics: Evidence-Based Medicine

Managing Health Care in the Future