Specialty Connect

Specialty Connect


Tuesday, Oct. 11, 2022

Description

Multiple skin conditions — including psoriasis, atopic dermatitis, and alopecia areata — are mediated by complex immunological pathways that drive disease onset and progression. Recent years have seen the introduction of novel targeted therapies inhibit cytokines that play key roles in these pathways, and many more related therapies are in development. Targeted immune-modulating therapies offer patients with moderate to severe disease additional opportunities to achieve and maintain disease control. However, the rapidly growing therapeutic armamentarium presents challenges for managed care professionals seeking to develop and implement evidence-based, patient-centered policies to ensure that the right patient has access to the right therapy at the right time. During Specialty Connect, experts will focus on managed care considerations for managing immune-mediated skin conditions. Topics will include the future pipeline, considerations for treatment selection, and formulary and financial risk management strategies.  

Specialty Connect is a strategic, forward-thinking pre-conference program designed to focus on topics important to those involved with specialty management. The program is designed for and with industry leaders, experts, and managed care professionals operating in this fast-growing sector and will provide opportunities to both learn and network with those interested in specialty management.

Who Should Attend

Specialty Connect is designed to provide insights and solutions for pharmacists who practice in managed care settings, and to help them maintain and enhance their knowledge, skills, and abilities specifically in the area of dermatology.

Learning Objectives 

At the completion of this activity, participants should be able to: 

  1. Describe impact of moderate-to-severe immune-mediated skin conditions on clinical and patient-reported outcomes, healthcare utilization, and costs. 
  2. Differentiate new and emerging targeted therapies for immune-mediated skin conditions based on mechanisms of action, efficacy and safety data, and indications. 
  3. Discuss guidelines, clinical data, and patient factors to treatment decision-making for diverse patients with immune-mediated skin conditions. 
  4. Identify formulary designs, contracting, and other financial risk management strategies for the treatment of immune-mediated skin conditions. 
Agenda
1:00–1:05pm
  Welcome and Introductions

Moderator: 

Eleanor Perfetto, PhD, MS 
Professor
University of Maryland School of Pharmacy 
Baltimore, MD

1:05–2:05pm
Overview of the Natural History and Burden of Immune-Mediated Skin Conditions

Course Description: 

Several dermatologic conditions, including psoriasis, atopic dermatitis, and alopecia areata, have complex immunologic pathogenic pathways involving multiple interleukins and cytokines that drive disease onset and progression. These conditions all have the potential to be debilitating and are often associated with significant burdens on quality of life, mental health, and social, academic, occupational, and economic outcomes. During this session, the pathogenesis of each of these conditions will be explored, common comorbidities will be reviewed, and details about the patient burden of these conditions will be presented.  

Faculty: 

Noelia Ferreyra 
Patient Advocate 
National Psoriasis Foundation
La Mesa, CA  

Clive Liu, MD 
Director 
Bellevue Dermatology 
Bellevue, WA   

2:05–2:50pm
New and Emerging Targeted Therapies for Immune-Mediated Skin Conditions

Course Description: 

While topical therapies (e.g., corticosteroids) are often used for mild disease, patients with moderate to severe immune-mediated skin conditions often require systemic therapies. Conventional immunosuppressive medications and phototherapy have important drawbacks, including toxicity or limited availability. More recently, targeted biologic and small molecule therapies that inhibit specific immunologic pathways have been developed. These targeted therapies offer new options for patients who have not responded well to conventional treatment and have the potential to slow disease progression, possibly presenting the onset of disease-related complications and comorbidities. 

Faculty: 

Steven Kheloussi, PharmD, MBA 
Manager, Clinical Pharmacy Strategies 
Highmark Inc. 
Wilkes-Barre, PA  

2:50–3:10pm
Break

Information to come.

3:10–4:00pm
Evidence-Based and Patient-Specific Considerations for Optimizing Treatment Outcomes

Course Description: 

In 2019, the American Academy of Dermatology and the National Psoriasis Foundation released updated guidelines to include recommendations for the treatment of psoriasis with newer biologics and small molecule therapies. However, the most recent guidelines for atopic dermatitis (last updated in 2014) and alopecia areata (last updated in 2010) do not address newer treatment options. Therefore, treatment and management recommendations must rely on international guidelines, peer-reviewed publications, and expert-led consensus. A common theme across guidelines is the importance of the patient’s perspective when making treatment decisions so that the impact on patients’ lives is considered when assessing if patients are being treated appropriately. Additionally, guidelines increasingly recommend accounting for patient-specific factors like comorbidities and social determinants of health when making treatment decisions. Increasing importance is given to racial and ethnic differences (and associated disparities) observed among patients with dermatological conditions given that they can present very differently across races, skin tones, and ethnicities.  

In this session, evidence-based and patient-centered recommendations for the treatment of immune-mediated skin conditions that accounts for disease- and patient-specific factors, including severity, comorbidities, and social determinants of health will be reviewed, and participants will have the opportunity to hear directly from a patient regarding the importance of access to appropriate care. 

Faculty:  

Cheri Frey, MD
Assistant Professor, Program Director
Department of Dermatology
Howard University 
Washington, DC 

4:00–4:30pm
Payer Perspectives on Treatment Decision-Making and Access

Course Description:

In addition to the substantial burden placed on patients, the systemic and chronic nature of immune-mediated skin conditions has an important impact on healthcare utilization and costs. These costs are increasingly driven by the use of specialty drugs, including targeted biologics and small molecule drugs. Given the growing use of targeted therapies for immune-mediated skin conditions, payers raise concerns and challenges in defining appropriate access to patients to manage these increasing costs. Payers have implemented various strategies within their benefit designs, including step therapy, prior authorizations, rebates, and coupons, to ensure the right patient receives timely access to the right therapy at the right time. However, to do this, managed care needs to account for the evolving evidence-based recommendations as well as available/emerging clinical data to understand the role of each therapy can have on achieving remission, improving patients’ quality of life, reducing safety and tolerability risks. In this session, managed care representatives will share their experiences optimizing utilization of this growing group of medications. 

Faculty: 

Casey Butrus, PharmD 
Senior Pharmacist 
Highmark 
Pittsburgh, PA 

Stephanie Cho, PharmD, BCPS 
Clinical Pharmacy Specialist in Dermatology 
Kaiser Permanente Colorado 
Lone Tree, CO 

4:30–5:25pm
Panel Discussion

During this interactive panel discussion, presenters will engage in conversation with the moderator and the audience about pressing managed care issues regarding the treatment of immune-mediated skin conditions. 

Faculty: 

Casey Butrus, PharmD 
Senior Pharmacist 
Highmark 
Pittsburgh, PA 

Stephanie Cho, PharmD, BCPS 
Clinical Pharmacy Specialist in Dermatology 
Kaiser Permanente Colorado 
Lone Tree, CO 

Leah M. Howard, JD 
President and CEO 
National Psoriasis Foundation 
Alexandria, VA 

5:25–5:30pm
Closing

Adjourn.

Accreditation 

ACPE: 0233-0000-22-031-L01-P | Contact Hours: 4.0 | Activity Type: Knowledge-based 

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ACPE logo

The Academy of Managed Care Pharmacy (AMCP) is accredited by the Accreditation Council for Pharmacy Education (ACPE) as a provider of continuing pharmacy education (CPE). Pharmacists can earn a maximum of 4 contact hours of CPE credit by attending all CPE sessions during Specialty Connect (not including the satellite symposium held in conjunction with the conference). To obtain credit, pharmacists must attend a session in its entirety, participate in session-specific learning assessments, obtain a session-specific attendance code, complete a session evaluation, and record their participation online at amcplearn.org no later than 11:59 PM PT on Monday, Nov. 7, 2022. No exceptions can be made after this date. 

Visit our CPE Information & Policies page for additional information on AMCP’s continuing pharmacy education policies.