US Bioservices Executive Joins Board of Directors for National Association of Specialty Pharmacy

WASHINGTON, March 30, 2018 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- Today, the National Association of Specialty Pharmacy (NASP) announced the addition of healthcare veteran Kevin James, RPh, MBA to its governing board of directors, welcoming this senior executive from US Bioservices, a part of AmerisourceBergen. In addition to his new responsibilities representing the interests of over 1,200 corporate and individual NASP members nationwide, Kevin James serves as the Vice President, Payer Strategy for US Bioservices.

"The National Association of Specialty Pharmacy is pleased to welcome Kevin James and extends its heartfelt appreciation and gratitude to exiting board members Kelly Ratliff, DPh, President of US Bioservices and Mark Vineis, Vice President of Managed Markets & Specialty Services at Sandoz Inc United States," said Sheila Arquette, Executive Director of NASP.

"Kelly Ratliff and Mark Vineis are experienced, accomplished and seasoned industry veterans, who were instrumental in providing direction and leadership during a critical time of NASP growth, tasked with elevating the practice of specialty pharmacy, promoting the education and certification of pharmacists, and advocating for public policies that ensure patients have appropriate access to specialty medications on behalf of NASP's multi-stakeholder membership. Kevin will be instrumental in supporting NASP's mission of ensuring patients receive the high-quality, high-touch patient care and support services that are critical to optimally managing and living with complex, life-altering, and often life-threatening diseases from the specialty pharmacy of their choosing."

"As professionals within the specialty pharmacy industry, we all have a unique understanding of, and appreciation for, the level of care our patients need and deserve. It is an honor to serve on the board of an organization dedicated to elevating the practice of specialty pharmacy, and I look forward to exploring opportunities that will allow us to extend the clinical reach and knowledge of our pharmacy partners – ultimately improving patient outcomes and enhancing lives," said Kevin James.

About Specialty Pharmacy
Specialty pharmacy provides medications to treat patients with serious, chronic, rare, progressive, or debilitating disease (or fatal if left untreated or undertreated). Examples of these illnesses include cancer, hepatitis C, infectious disease, infertility, Crohn's disease, rheumatoid arthritis, psoriasis, HIV/AIDS, multiple sclerosis, Cystic Fibrosis, organ transplantation, human growth hormone deficiencies, hemophilia, and other bleeding disorders.

About Kevin James
Kevin James currently serves as Vice President, Payer Strategy for US Bioservices. In this role, he is responsible for leading payer strategy development, developing and driving innovative pull-through initiatives, and guiding payer programs to ensure quality of deliverables related to specialty pharmacy services. Kevin received his pharmacy degree from the St. Louis College of Pharmacy and earned an M.B.A from Lindenwood University in St. Louis, MO.    

Kevin has over 20 years of experience in managing pharmacy operations, program implementation, and managed care contracting for commercial and government programs on behalf of chain, independent, and specialty pharmacies. Kevin is a member of the National Council for Prescription Drug Programs (NCPDP), Academy of Managed Care Pharmacy (AMCP), National Association of Specialty Pharmacy (NASP), Pharmacy Benefit Management Institute (PBMI), and the St. Louis College of Pharmacy alumni association.  

About National Association of Specialty Pharmacy (NASP)
NASP was founded in 2012 and is the only national trade association representing all stakeholders in the specialty pharmacy industry. The core mission of NASP is to provide educational programs to pharmacists and other healthcare professionals, and to promote specialty pharmacist certification for specialty pharmacy professionals. NASP also serves as an advocate for public policies that ensure patients have appropriate access to specialty medications in tandem with critical services. In addition to providing medications to severely ill patients, specialty pharmacy also focuses on support programs and services to ensure patients realize the maximum clinical benefit from their medication, therapies and services, working to ease the treatment burden for patients, families and caregivers as they work to manage these tough conditions. 

CONTACT: Sheila Arquette, 703-842-0122, sarquette@naspnet.org

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SOURCE National Association of Specialty Pharmacy