Banner Health addressing drug shortages through Premier's ProvideGx™ generics sourcing subsidiary

PHOENIX, June 5, 2019 /PRNewswire/ -- Banner Health will partner with ProvideGx™, a new generic medication supply company, to help ensure that physicians and patients have access to drugs that would otherwise be in short supply. As part of the effort, Banner will work through ProvideGx to source safe, high-quality drugs on the national drug shortage list, as well as those in categories that lack competition. Moreover, the partnership is part of Banner's ongoing work to solve the national drug shortage crisis.

"The question of whether a drug is in short supply shouldn't impact the quality of care that our patients receive," says Russell Funk, CEO of Banner Pharmacy Services. "Our community trusts us to provide the most effective, life-saving care when and where our patients need it – and that's a commitment we stand behind. We are proud to partner with ProvideGx to help ensure our doctors have access to shortage drugs that provide the highest level of care to our patients. We believe that working through this innovative organization, we will have differentiated access to shortage drugs."

According to the University of Utah Drug Information Service, more than 200 vital medications are currently in shortage nationwide, including chemotherapy drugs, cardiovascular drugs, antimicrobials, sedation medications, electrolytes and nutritional supplements. As a result of these persistent shortages, 96% of health systems report that securing an adequate source of supply is a near constant challenge.

ProvideGx is a wholly-owned subsidiary of Premier Inc., a national health care improvement company. Guided by 31 Premier member health systems and the company's National Pharmacy Committee, ProvideGx represents more than 1,000 hospitals across the nation. ProvideGx is investing in innovative new business models and partnerships to address drug shortages, including partnering with quality generic drug manufacturers that can supply shortage products, co-funding the development of affordable products that address specific market needs, and securing contracts for active pharmaceutical ingredients to ensure a continuous supply as well as strategic sourcing agreements.

The ProvideGx partnership is the next step in Banner's ongoing effort to reliably source more than 250 high-quality products, including 92 shortage drugs by National Drug Code (NDC). Most recently, Premier partnered with Baxter to supply metoprolol injection, a life-saving medication used to treat hypertensive emergencies, which has been in shortage for nearly two years. In the future, ProvideGx is working to address a targeted pipeline of 60 crucial drugs, which will be introduced in the coming months.

"Premier is committed to aggregating the demand for products and creating a predictable channel for our member hospitals and health systems to access the drugs they need to improve the health of communities," said Mike Alkire, chief operating officer, Premier. "Banner should be commended for their progressive work to tackle this problem, together with Premier. We look forward to continuing our work with Banner to ensure their hospitals and skilled clinicians have affordable access to shortage medications, as well as others they need to provide high-quality care."

ABOUT BANNER HEALTH
Headquartered in Arizona, Banner Health is one of the largest nonprofit health care systems in the country. The system owns and operates 28 acute-care hospitals, Banner Health Network, Banner – University Medicine, academic and employed physician groups, long-term care centers, outpatient surgery centers and an array of other services; including Banner Urgent Care, family clinics, home care and hospice services, pharmacies and a nursing registry. Banner Health is in six states: Arizona, California, Colorado, Nebraska, Nevada and Wyoming. For more information, visit www.BannerHealth.com.

ABOUT PREMIER INC.
Premier Inc. is a leading healthcare improvement company, uniting an alliance of more than 4,000 U.S. hospitals and health systems and approximately 165,000 other providers and organizations to transform healthcare. With integrated data and analytics, collaboratives, supply chain solutions, and consulting and other services, Premier enables better care and outcomes at a lower cost. Premier plays a critical role in the rapidly evolving healthcare industry, collaborating with members to co-develop long-term innovations that reinvent and improve the way care is delivered to patients nationwide. Headquartered in Charlotte, N.C., Premier is passionate about transforming American healthcare. Please visit Premier's news and investor sites on www.premierinc.com; as well as Twitter, Facebook, LinkedIn, YouTube, Instagram and Premier's blog for more information about the company.

SOURCE Banner Health

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