Free Market Health’s Director of Clinical Product Strategy Tim Mizak, PharmD, MS, MBA shares his experience at the 2025 PQA Annual Meeting and his take on how these themes relate to the future of specialty pharmacy. Tim is a member of PQA's 2025-2026 Measure Update Panel.
I recently had the opportunity to attend the 2025 Pharmacy Quality Alliance (PQA) Annual Meeting—an event that consistently brings together thought leaders, innovators, and stakeholders who are shaping the future of pharmacy quality. As someone working in the specialty pharmacy space, I found the sessions and ensuing discussions especially relevant to the work we do at Free Market Health (FMH) and the challenges and opportunities our industry faces when it comes to delivering high-touch, high-quality care to patients with complex conditions.
The Unwavering Focus on Pharmacy Quality
One of the central themes of the conference was that quality is not a static measure but a dynamic commitment to patient-centered care. In specialty pharmacy, this means going beyond just adherence or timely refills to addressing gaps in care coordination, proactively identifying barriers to access, and tailoring interventions that reflect the complexity of each patient's health journey.
Throughout the meeting, presenters emphasized the need for multi-pronged approaches to advancing pharmacy quality, recognizing that no single strategy fits every setting. Case studies and panel discussions explored how different organizations—health plans, health systems, pharmacies, and technology vendors—are innovating to improve outcomes. These efforts ranged from collaborative partnerships among providers and payers working towards a common goal to leveraging predictive analytics to drive earlier interventions to piloting practice changes to target improved clinical outcomes. The shared message: quality improvement must be tailored, flexible, and inclusive of the full spectrum of care delivery.
Social Determinants of Health: A Recurrent and Urgent Theme
A key takeaway from multiple sessions was the growing consensus that clinical quality is incomplete without addressing Social Determinants of Health (SDoH). From transportation barriers to food insecurity to digital literacy, it’s clear that these non-medical factors profoundly shape patient outcomes.
For specialty pharmacy, this is especially important. Many of our patients already face compounding challenges from financial strain to limited access to condition-specific support resources. Several presenters underscored the need for data-driven, community-informed approaches that surface these social risks early and connect patients with the appropriate support systems. The sentiments shared resonated with me and reinforce FMH’s commitment to enabling SDoH screening and navigation within our value-based framework.
Information as a Determinant of Health: “People Matter to People”
A highlight of the meeting was the compelling keynote by Dr. Garth Graham, Director and Global Head of Healthcare and Public Health at Google and YouTube. His message was both simple and profound: information itself is a determinant of health, and the messenger can be just as important, if not more important, than the message itself.
In today’s hyper-connected world, patients are inundated with information but not always the right kind. The personal connection that patients develop with the providers of that information can be far more influential than any study results, board certification, or credentials. While this personal connection can be with the patient’s physician, pharmacist, or another member of their care team, it can also apply to friends, family, or even podcast and social media influencers. Given that most people start their healthcare journey with an internet search, it’s important to recognize the multidimensional nature of health information and the empowerment this connectivity provides. Dr. Graham emphasized the critical role we must play in curating information that is credible, attainable, authentic, and relatable.
For specialty pharmacy, this offers both a challenge and an opportunity. Pharmacists are often a patient’s most consistent healthcare touchpoint throughout their treatment journey, and this is especially true for many specialty therapies. If we can offer timely, digestible, and evidence-based information, we not only support better outcomes, we also build trust.
What Does This Mean for Specialty Pharmacy?
The convergence of these themes—Pharmacy Quality, Social Determinants of Health, and Information as a Determinant of Health—makes it clear that specialty pharmacy must evolve to meet the broader definition of patient-centered care. We can’t focus solely on the medication; we must focus on the whole person.
This means:
The 2025 PQA Annual Meeting reminded me that while specialty pharmacy is often seen as complex and clinical, it is ultimately about people. And when we lead with quality, compassion, and innovation, we can drive meaningful change.