Shields Health Solutions and Erlanger Partner to Introduce Specialty Pharmacy Services

The partnership will initially serve three disease states: neurology, rheumatology, and gastroenterology, with the intent to expand to additional patient populations. With the new partnership, specialty pharmacy liaisons will guide patients and caregivers who fill prescriptions with Erlanger, working with patients on-site. Among other tasks, these liaisons can assist patients and families with navigating barriers to care including health insurance, prior authorizations, or securing financial assistance.

Expanded patient support services in conjunction with access to recently approved and newly available specialty medications, will offer Erlanger patients greater availability for on-site treatment options. Shields currently partners with nearly 80 health systems around the country and has helped their patients reduce co-pays, promptly receive medication delivery — often within two days — and improved medication adherence greater than 90 percent on average.

“The newly formed specialty pharmacy at Erlanger marks a commitment to expanding the reach of the health system’s services and providing superior patient care in the Chattanooga area,” said John Lucey, CEO at Shields. “Our partnership will increase access to affordable care and improve therapy management and care coordination for Erlanger’s patients. Shields leverages our access to 90 percent of the limited distribution drugs to provide complex patients with the therapy they need and help them navigate restricted payer networks.”

The region’s only academic teaching hospital, Erlanger serves a broad patient population across portions of Tennessee, Georgia, North Carolina, and Alabama. It is the tri-state region’s only Level I Trauma Center and treats more than a million patients annually. Erlanger is comprised of seven total hospitals, including one pediatric facility, a behavioral health hospital, and a stroke center that has received recognition for its exhaustive stroke and neurosciences program.

“Our partnership with Shields and the new specialty pharmacy program will permit us to enhance the premium care we provide to our communities,” said Rob Maloney, COO at Erlanger. “We are delighted to join Shields’ network of premier health systems and leverage insights and experience from the foremost experts in the health system specialty pharmacy industry.”

About Shields Health Solutions
Shields Health Solutions (Shields) is the premier specialty pharmacy accelerator in the country. The Shields Performance Platform, an integrated set of solutions, services and technology, is intentionally designed to elevate payer and drug access for specialty pharmacies, elevate health outcomes for complex patients, and elevate growth throughout the entire health system. As the foremost experts in the health system specialty pharmacy industry, Shields has a proven track record of success including access to over 80 percent of all limited distribution drugs (LDDs) and most (health insurance) payers in the nation; and a clinical model proven to lower total cost of care by 13%. In partnership with more than 75 health systems across the country through national-scale collaboration, Shields has a vested interest in delivering measurable clinical and financial results for health systems. For more, visit our blog and follow us on social media, @ShieldsRX, LinkedIn, Facebook, and YouTube. Shields Health Solutions is a wholly owned subsidiary of Walgreens Boots Alliance and employs nearly 2,000 people across the country.

About Erlanger
Erlanger is a non-profit academic medical center affiliated with the University of Tennessee College of Medicine and is the region’s only Level I Trauma Center and children’s hospital. Children’s Hospital at Erlanger provides the highest level of trauma, critical and inpatient care, and the region’s only Level IV neonatal intensive care unit – the highest level of neonatal care. Erlanger is the sole provider of tertiary care services spanning a 50,000 square-mile region encompassing southeast Tennessee, northwest Georgia, north Alabama, and western North Carolina. The health system comprises seven hospitals and seven emergency departments, provides medical services for a fleet of six helicopters, and offers exceptional comprehensive care at all of life’s stages. With a more than a century history, Erlanger continues its founding mission to compassionately care for people. Erlanger is one of the largest employers in Chattanooga, Tenn. Each year, Erlanger has approximately one million patient visits. Visit www.erlanger.org