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Innovation, Personal Care Put Diplomat Pharmacy on Right Track

14 February 10

By David Harris | Flint Journal
February 14, 2010, 10:00AM

SWARTZ CREEK, Michigan — At a time when many companies are downsizing, Diplomat Specialty Pharmacy, headquartered in Swartz Creek, is expanding.

Diplomat plans to hire about 100 people this year at its two locations in Genesee County, said Phil Hagerman, president and CEO.

The company is known as a “specialty pharmacy” because it distributes medications for chronic diseases that involve more oversight than usual. Specialty pharmacies employ nurses and other professionals who teach patients how to properly use medication, said Jim Owen, director of professional practice at the American Pharmacists Association.

It’s a business segment that is growing nationwide, Owen said.

Diplomat already has hired about 25 people. Most of the jobs in Genesee County will be pharmacy technicians, nurses and customer service representatives in a call center.

The pharmacy, started in 1975, has locations on Beecher Road in Flint Township, Grand Rapids, Chicago and Los Angeles, employing more than 360 people nationwide.

Owens said he sees the entire pharmacy industry headed toward more managed, personal care.

“There is a need for a pharmacist to become engaged on a one-on-one level,” Owen said. “Pharmacists are taking a much larger role in managing drugs for patients.”

That’s because many new drugs on the market require additional care, and patients need instructions on how to take them, he said.

One example is the medication Revlimid, a drug for blood cancer patients that came on the market about three years ago. Hagerman said the patient must have a counseling session each time he or she fills the prescription.

The drug also is quite expensive for Medicare patients — about a $3,800 co-pay for patients the first time they purchase it and a $250 co-pay for each refill. Hagerman said he has a team of 12 employees who will search for donations to help pay for the medication.

“It’s a great spot for Diplomat because we are only one of a handful that can do this,” Hagerman said.

Diplomat recently signed a contract to distribute medication for two large California health providers, and also has contracts with Blue Cross Blue Shield of Michigan, Hagerman said.

“In the first four months of this year, we’ll have 10,000 new patients,” Hagerman said.

The company was named to Inc. magazine’s list of the 500 fastest-growing companies in 2009. Hagerman said the company expects to generate more than $500 million this year.

Diplomat had humble beginnings. The company started when Hagerman graduated from Ferris State University in 1975 and opened the business with his father, Dale Hagerman, who also was a pharmacist. They began as a local distributor before expanding regionally and now nationally, Phil Hagerman said.

Today, Hagerman is meeting with clinical research organizations around the country to distribute new drugs and track patients who take them so that organizations can document the effectiveness of a drug.

Another area of growth is the company’s information-technology department. The company developed a sophisticated patient-management program that helps it care for patients in an efficient way.