The Business of Pharmacy: The Journey of Financial Stewardship

October 20, 2026
This CE program will provide pharmacy leaders with a practical understanding of the financial and business principles that drive healthcare pharmacy operations. Participants will learn strategies to reduce expenses and optimize resources, including drug spend management, contracting, formulary and dosing strategies, workforce optimization, and technology investments. The program will also explore opportunities to generate and protect revenue through revenue integrity, 340B, payer contracting, site-of-care strategies, patient capture, ROI and business cases, and growth opportunities. Through key financial metrics, real-world examples, and moderated discussion, participants will gain insights into balancing short-term financial pressures with long-term strategic goals and advancing pharmacy’s value across the healthcare organization.

Target Audience

  • Pharmacists
  • Pharmacy Technicians
  • Other Healthcare Professionals

Learning Objectives

At the conclusion of this activity, pharmacists should be able to:  
  • Describe the role of financial stewardship in pharmacy operations, including the relationship between reimbursement models, drug spend, revenue, margin, and key financial metrics. 
  • Identify expense-reduction strategies involving formulary management, dosing protocols, biosimilars, therapeutic interchanges, wholesaler and GPO contracting, chargemaster optimization, and technology utilization. 
  • Explain revenue-generation and revenue-integrity strategies, including 340B, payer contracting, site-of-care optimization, patient capture, advocacy, and alternative payer models. 
  • Evaluate pharmacy initiatives and business cases using financial metrics, return-on-investment principles, workforce optimization, and opportunities for sustainable growth. 
 
At the conclusion of this activity, pharmacy technicians should be able to:  
  • Describe the pharmacy technician’s role in supporting financial stewardship and the relationship between medication-use processes, reimbursement, drug spend, revenue, and margin. 
  • Identify operational practices that support expense reduction, including accurate purchasing, GPO and wholesaler contract compliance, formulary initiatives, dosing protocols, therapeutic interchanges, and biosimilar utilization. 
  • Recognize pharmacy workflow and documentation issues that may affect revenue integrity, chargemaster accuracy, 340B operations, billing, and reimbursement.
  • Apply appropriate workflow, technology, inventory, and communication practices that support cost-effective care, operational efficiency, patient capture, and pharmacy financial performance.

Course summary

Available credit: 
  • 1.00 ACPE Pharmacist
  • 1.00 ACPE Pharmacy Technician
  • 0.10 IACET
Course opens: 
10/20/2026
Course expires: 
12/19/2026
Event starts: 
10/20/2026 - 12:00pm CDT
Event ends: 
10/20/2026 - 1:00pm CDT
Add to calendar: 
FACULTY & PLANNERS
Faculty

Karen J. McConnell, PharmD, MBA, FASHP, FCCP, CPEL, BCPS
Chief Pharmacy Officer, University of Michigan Health
Associate Dean for Clinical Affairs, Michigan Medicine/University of Michigan College of Pharmacy 

Noelle RM Chapman, PharmD, MBA, BCPS, FASHP
Vice President, Chief Pharmacy Officer, UCSF Health
Associate Dean, UCSF School of Pharmacy

 

Planners

Stacy Lauderdale, PharmD, BCPS
Associate Vice President of Evidence-Based Medicine and Drug Information
Vizient

Jackie Stokes, BBA
Pharmacy Services Manager
Vizient

Carolyn Liptak, MBA, BS Pharm
Pharmacy Executive Director, Regulatory Compliance & Revenue Integrity
Vizient

Samantha Gordon, MS
CE Programs Manager      
Vizient

Marilu Kelly, MSN, RN, NPD-BC, CHCP
Director, Continuing Education       
Vizient

 

DISCLOSURE
As an accredited provider of continuing education, Vizient, Inc. is dedicated to ensuring this activity presents learners with only accurate, balanced, scientifically justified recommendations, and is free from promotion, marketing, and commercial bias. In accordance with The Standards for Integrity and Independence in Accredited Continuing Education, all planners, faculty, and others in control of the educational content have disclosed the absence or existence of all financial relationships (of any dollar amount) with ineligible companies within the past 24 months.
 

Ineligible companies – those companies whose primary business is producing, marketing, selling, re-selling, or distributing healthcare products used by or on patients.

It is Vizient’s policy that owners and employees of ineligible companies, and any individuals who refuse to disclose the absence or existence of financial relationships with any ineligible companies are disqualified from participating as planners or faculty.

 
Statement of Content Validity
Vizient, Inc. educational activities are intended to assist healthcare teams advance their professional responsibilities in accordance with the definition of continuing education. It is the policy of Vizient, Inc. to review and ensure that all content and recommendations for patient care within accredited CE is evidenced-based, based on current science and clinical reasoning while ensuring the content is fair and balanced. All recommendations must conform to the generally accepted standards of experimental design, data collection, analysis, and interpretation. Vizient, Inc. does not permit accredited continuing education if it advocates for unscientific approaches to diagnosis or therapy, or if the education promotes recommendations, treatment, or manners of practicing healthcare that are determined to have risks or dangers that outweigh the benefits or are known to be ineffective in the treatment of patients.
 
FDA Off-Label Use
Faculty presenters are also expected to disclose any discussion of (1) off-label or investigational uses of FDA approved commercial products or devices or (2) products or devices not yet approved in the United States.
 
Disclaimer
The education provided through this activity is for continuing education purposes only. The views and opinions expressed in this activity are those of the faculty/presenters and do not necessarily reflect the views of Vizient, Inc.
 
Disclosure Statements
Absence of Relevant Financial Relationships
None of the planners, faculty, or others in a position to control content for this educational activity have relevant financial relationship(s) to disclose with ineligible companies whose primary business is producing, marketing, selling, re-selling, or distributing healthcare products used by or on patients.
Joint Accreditation Statement
In support of improving patient care, Vizient, Inc. is jointly accredited by the Accreditation Council for Continuing Medical Education (ACCME), the Accreditation Council for Pharmacy Education (ACPE), and the American Nurses Credentialing Center (ANCC) to provide continuing education for the healthcare team.
 
Designation Statements

Pharmacists (CPE)

Vizient, Inc. designates this live activity for a maximum of 1.0 contact hours for pharmacists.

Universal Activity Number: JA0006103-0000-26-150-L04-P

Pharmacy Technicians (CPE)

Vizient, Inc. designates this live activity for a maximum of 1.0 contact hours for pharmacy technicians.

Universal Activity Number: JA0006103-0000-26-150-L04-T

International Accreditors for Continuing Education and Training (IACET)

Vizient, Inc. is Jointly Accredited by the Joint Accreditation for Interprofessional Continuing Education and has been approved to offer Continuing Education Units (CEUs). CEUs are awarded for learning events that align with the ANSI/IACET Standard for Continuing Education and Training. IACET is recognized internationally as a standards development organization and accrediting body that promotes quality continuing education and training.

This learning event is eligible for 0.1 Continuing Education Units (CEUs). 

Available Credit

  • 1.00 ACPE Pharmacist
  • 1.00 ACPE Pharmacy Technician
  • 0.10 IACET
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Required Hardware/software

 

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