Los Angeles County Department of Health Services System-Wide Pharmaceutical Management

About the Program

Category: Financial Management (Best in Category)

Year: 2009

As society lives longer, the use of pharmaceuticals to manage multiple chronic disease states has become a mainstay of modern medical care. Chronic disease states such as diabetes, hypertension, hyperlipidemia, and arthritis are commonly treated with multiple medications, which are often at high cost. Faced with the challenges of funding the increased costs of this therapy in their indigent population, particularly with the loss of Federal drug pricing in their comprehensive health center pharmacies, the Los Angeles County Department of Health Services Pharmacy leadership team developed a strategic plan to manage these rising costs. This plan focused on the management of pharmaceutical resources in a manner that promoted patient outcomes and cost-effective therapy. Through the use of multiple strategic initiatives implemented in the 2007-2008 fiscal year, the department finished the fiscal year $46 million under the established budget, despite the loss in Federal drug pricing at the outlying county comprehensive health center pharmacies.