U.S. Rep. Marsha Blackburn (R-Tenn.), who serves the 7th District of Tennessee, toured one of the nation's leading charitable medication distribution centers, the Dispensary of Hope, earlier this month. The site visit and briefing included a walk-through of the operations of the charity medication distributor, and a briefing on medication access issues, models of collaboration between health systems and drug manufacturers, and the Dispensary of Hope's national expansion effort.
Dispensary of Hope, founded in 2003 by Bruce Wolf, MD, a physician at Saint Thomas Health, is now part of Saint Thomas Health, a ministry of Ascension. This national collaborative effort encompasses a diverse partnership, including Ascension, HCA, Mylan Pharmaceuticals, and other national healthcare organizations and drug manufacturers.
Discussions included the importance of the 340B drug pricing program for patients most in need. Attendees were, from Dispensary of Hope, Chris Palombo, CEO, Scott Cornwell, Chief Supply Chain Officer, and Anita Stanford, Chief Development Officer; and from Saint Thomas Health, David Neu, Executive Director of Pharmacy, Greg Pope, Chief Mission and Ministry Officer, and Nancy Anness, Vice President of Advocacy, Access, and Community Outreach.
Picture above, from left: Chris Palombo, CEO, Dispensary of Hope; U.S. Rep. Marsha Blackburn (R-Tenn.); Scott Cornwell, Chief Supply Chain Officer, Dispensary of Hope; and David Neu, Executive Director of Pharmacy, Saint Thomas Health.
