VitalSource™ GPO shares their vision for 2020 and beyond at Fall Knowledge Forum

In a new era of oncology care filled with unprecedented challenges, practices need a GPO partner that offers the clear vision, deep expertise, and creative thinking needed to help them thrive. The VitalSource™ GPO Fall Knowledge Forum in Phoenix, AZ, offered valuable insights through presentations by industry-leading speakers, thought-provoking discussions, training and networking opportunities to help members gain the knowledge they need to help future-proof their practices.

VitalSource™ GPO leaders welcomed practices to the event by sharing its outlook for the future. David S. Memel, MD, MS, MBA, VP of GPO, reinforced VitalSource™ GPO’s unwavering commitment to community oncology practice through its investment in people and continuing efforts to develop solutions that meet the needs of its members. 

Amy Valley, PharmD, BCOP, VP, Clinical Strategy and Technology Solutions offered an overview of CMS’ value-based care programs and how quality reporting will continue to shape the future of practice management. Valley also explained the need for GPOs to be able to support value-based contracting arrangements from both pharma and payers and the steps VitalSource™ is taking to deliver tools to manage patient population, so that providers can access the data they need to improve quality and lower costs.

Duane Kembel, VP of Physician Office Sales, highlighted the continued growth in GPO membership and discussed the investments being made to help support and sustain this growth.

Looking towards the future, VitalSource™ GPO will continue to leverage its deep expertise, deliver responsive tools and provide collaborative support to help its members meet new challenges.

Across the healthcare landscape, increasing consolidation has led to a less competitive insurance market, which has reduced patient choice while increasing costs. Overall healthcare costs in the United States are higher than any other nation, and many patients are priced out of getting the care they need. Spending on prescription drugs has risen rapidly. Oncology care is at the very forefront of these industry shifts. Thankfully, Community Oncology Alliance (COA) and the American Medical Association (AMA) are working on behalf of patients and providers and advocating for change.

At Knowledge Forum, leaders from both organizations discussed the work they are doing to address these problems. Ted Okon, Executive Director of COA, reported that community oncology practices are more respected, have a greater voice and more leverage than ever before and COA is working tirelessly on their behalf. As pharmacy benefit managers (PBMs) work to narrow networks and control the delivery of drugs to the patient by requiring the use of a corporate or mail-order pharmacy, COA is working to increase the exposure of these tactics through media campaigns. Additionally, COA is taking legal action against PBMs and working with Congress and employers to expose PBMs and pass legislation.

Keynote speaker Barbara McAneny, MD, MACP, FASCO, Immediate Past President of AMA, outlined the steps AMA is taking to remove obstacles that interfere with patient care. AMA is working with national partners and insurance companies to “right-size” prior authorization. Working with state legislators, AMA is pursuing bills to address prior authorization and step therapy, advocating for more regulation of these programs. AMA is also seeking greater transparency in drug pricing and taking steps to increase market competition and combat anticompetitive practices. To streamline Medicare physician payment reforms, AMA is championing system changes focused on driving improvements to patient care, instead of adding administrative burden, and is also helping to streamline reporting requirements. 

In addition to covering the high-level trends and hot button issues affecting oncology care, the Fall Knowledge Forum included pharmacy breakout sessions and training.

Daniel Martinez of PioneerRx offered a session on pulling reporting for DIR fees, as well as how to use the platform to manage inventory, establish reordering thresholds and manage pharmacy care plans. Casey Foster, Lead Consultant for the VitalSource™ GPO Practice Consultant team, provided a Medicare outlook for 2020. In this session, Foster reviewed network expansions and changes, and resources provided by the Site of Care Dispensing team to help combat DIR fees, such as the 2020 Medicare 101 guide, which reviews point of sale and DIR reimbursements in detail.

Knowledge Forum events are held biannually in the Spring and Fall and are open to all VitalSource™ GPO members. The Spring 2020 event will be held April 2-4 at the Grand Hyatt Atlanta in Atlanta, GA. Mark your calendar now.

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