Genoa: Integrated model improves adherence
Genoa CEO John Figueroa has been in the business for 26 years, but he told Drug Store News that the pharmacy chain’s business model is “the most exciting model I’ve ever been a part of.” Genoa’s integrated care model — which centers on pharmacies on-site at community mental health centers — has him excited for several reasons, among them the company’s growth in the past year and the interest that payers have begun to show in the adherence boost exhibited by patients served by Genoa pharmacies.
Last year, Genoa saw 25% revenue growth — a number Figueroa said has been consistent for the past five years — and by the end of March 2017 had 357 locations in 42 states, with eight locations opening in the first two months of the year. In the past 12 months, it has entered at least five new states, opening its first New York pharmacy in the fall and acquiring 50 locations across Mississippi, Arkansas, Tennessee, and South Carolina in January through its acquisition of the Mississippi-based Advanced Pharmacy Solutions. It also grew its Michigan presence with the acquisition of Advanced Care’s behavioral health and residential care services division.
Besides Genoa’s massive acquisition activity, Figueroa said the company also has enjoyed solid organic growth in its existing operations, with pharmacies open more than five years up 8% to 10% a year. That said, Figueroa is even more optimistic about the opportunities to grow the business further. “There are roughly 5,000 community mental health centers in the country, and as fast as we’re growing, there’s an opportunity to expand and grow even faster every year,” he said.
Helping guide that success is Genoa’s integrated care model, which allows its pharmacists to work more closely with the doctors and patients at the mental health centers in which they work. In addition, Genoa also offers telephsychiatry services from its network of more than 180 doctors to about 85 clinics that are short-staffed.
Those relationships are helping Genoa improve patient adherence among a “very special population,” Figueroa explained. “And when they’re on the right meds and they stay on them, … the economic benefit and the quality of life for this patient population is substantial.” According to an August 2016 study in the Journal of Managed Care Pharmacy, adherence rates among Genoa pharmacy patients averaged 96% versus 81% among patients who received their medications elsewhere.
Important, insurance providers have begun to take notice, Figueroa said. “As we talk to the payers — and payers [say] this is one of their [most costly] disease states [to manage] — and we can demonstrate the value of adherence with integrated care, they get very excited. Several organizations have begun to discuss custom programs around enhanced medication therapy management and other clinical opportunities. If you can make an impact in cost and quality, the payers are all ears, and they want to do these unique programs.”
Looking to the future, Figueroa expects its partnerships to grow with the business. “We’re having these incredible conversations with payers, and I believe it’s going to impact our overall model even more from a financial standpoint,” Figueroa said. “But the best part is from a patient standpoint. Things are better for them as well.” Indeed, the company’s integrated care model is catching the attention of the business community. In March, Genoa was named one of 18 companies honored by Seattle Business Magazine’s 2017 Leaders, earning the silver award for Innovation in Health Care Delivery.
“Our focus has always been on providing solutions to our partner mental health centers and their [patients],” noted Genoa chief commercial officer Mark Peterson. “We are inspired by the individuals … we are privileged to care for, who often are forgotten or cast aside in our society.”