New Strategic Plan Built on Examination of Changes and Challenges

I am delighted to announce the release of our new strategic plan, AMCP 2020, which will guide and strengthen the Academy as we enter our 30th year of serving thousands of professionals who make up managed care pharmacy.

The strategic plan will ensure that AMCP is the recognized authority in managed care pharmacy’s efforts to improve patient outcomes and control health care costs — twin goals that have long been at the heart of our work. The plan itself focuses on four broad areas: (1) thought leadership, (2) member engagement, (3) building the brand, and (4) operational excellence.

You can read the full document here www.amcp.org/AMCP2020/ 

As we arrive at this point, some have asked me what’s the importance of having a strategic plan in the first place.  

Without hesitation, I can tell you that having a strong strategic plan is essential to the success of any membership organization. Without a clear sense of vision — and a structure to implement that vision — a membership organization can quickly drift, relying on outdated initiatives that fail to serve members. This is especially true in health care and pharmacy sectors, which are ever-changing.

To create an effective plan, you must first know everything about where you are and where you’re going. That is way I’m so proud of this plan, which grew out of many hours of thoughtful and painstaking discussions.

AMCP Board members, senior staff and outside experts left no stone unturned as they examined the challenges and changes confronting our field. “Major findings” included: heightened patient engagement and expectations; uncertainty in regulatory and policy environments; consolidation in the health care sector; conflicts and failures of the traditional managed care model; increasingly unaffordable prescription drug benefits; and challenges in using data and care integration to enable better health outcomes.

Self-examination can be invigorating, but also unnerving as it pushes us outside of our comfort zone. This is a good thing, and crucial to generating new ideas that ultimately allow us to thrive in a changing system. I thank all of my colleagues and peers for their honesty and expertise in developing this plan.

Another question I get, naturally, is how the strategic plan will address these challenges. 

First off, the plan emphasizes an area of considerable strength for AMCP. That is the work we’ve done leading the trend away from a system that pays for volume to one that pays for value. This effort sits at the top of our No. 1 strategic goal, “thought leadership.” As part of the plan, AMCP will help build a new group of practice leaders who are driving the volume-to-value trend. This will not only address challenges of today’s health care system, but will ensure that AMCP remains relevant for years to come. As such, AMCP will be recognized as the primary source of policy and regulatory recommendations for legislators and regulators, another key goal of our plan. We’re very excited about these efforts.

Other areas of the plan also play to AMCP’s strengths, including those focused on our roughly 8,000 members who design and manage benefits for hundreds of millions of Americans. We never forget that our members are the heart of the organization, and the strategic plan redoubles efforts to ensure we remain essential, and that members are engaged.

Finally, some people have asked about my own personal views of the strategic plan. 

I couldn’t be more delighted with this plan and how it came about. It is supremely satisfying to work with such dedicated and enthusiastic volunteer leaders and staff. AMCP is a special organization that resembles a large family. Our members are passionate about AMCP and the mission of managed care pharmacy. This plan does justice to those members who are celebrating their 30th anniversary with us, as well as brand new members. I am honored to serve as AMCP’s CEO, and know that this plan, along with the guidance of the Board of Directors and hard work of our staff, will make AMCP a force to be reckoned with in our next 30 years.