June 2023 Press Release

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

Contact: Shelly Spiro

703-599-5051; shelly@PharmacyHIT.org

June 15, 2023

PHIT Executive Director Named Co-chair

of Newly Formed ONC Pharmacy Interoperability and Emerging

Therapeutics Task Force 2023

ALEXANDRIA, Virginia – The Pharmacy HIT Collaborative (PHIT) is pleased to announce that Shelly Spiro, PHIT executive director, was named co-chair of the Office of the National Coordinator for Health Information Technology’s (ONC) Health Information Technology Advisory Committee (HITAC) newly formed Pharmacy Interoperability and Emerging Therapeutics Task 2023, along with Hans Buitendijk, Oracle Health.  The announcement of the formation 23-member task force was made by Tricia Lee Rolle, ONC senior advisor, during the June 15 ONC (HITAC) call. 

In responding to the announcement, Ms. Spiro said, “I’m honored to co-chair the task force on behalf of the pharmacy profession and look forward to working with the task force members to further advance pharmacy interoperability.”

The task force is charged with identifying opportunities and recommendations to support and improve interoperability between pharmacy constituents (prescribers, pharmacists, pharmacy benefit managers, payers, public health agencies, etc.) for pharmacy-based clinical services and care coordination, including identifying standards needs to support prescribing and management of emerging therapies and policy and technology needs and considerations for direct-to-consumer medication services. More information about the task force was presented during the June 15 ONC HITAC meeting.

About the Pharmacy HIT Collaborative

The Pharmacy HIT Collaborative comprises the major national pharmacy associations, representing 250,000 members, including those in pharmacy education and accreditation.  The Collaborative’s membership is composed of the key national pharmacy associations involved in health information technology (HIT), the National Council for Prescription Drug Programs, and 13 associate members encompassing e-prescribing, health information networks, transaction processing networks, pharmacy companies, system vendors, pharmaceutical manufacturers, and other organizations that support pharmacists’ services. For additional information, visit http://www.pharmacyhit.org/.