Specialty and Infusion Insights to Help Health Systems Achieve More

Specialty pharmacy and infusion care are swiftly transforming how chronic and rare conditions are treated. In fact, according to recent data, infusion therapy continues to rise each year with approximately 3.2 million Americans currently receiving this form of treatment per year.¹

In parallel to this growth, specialty prescriptions and infusion services are migrating to alternate sites of dispensing and care.¹ This shift adversely impacts the long-term viability of health systems and, more importantly, disrupts the continuum of care, which can compromise patient outcomes.

Since today’s modern patients make healthcare decisions like they make many other choices as consumers — with convenience, satisfaction and personalization top of mind — health systems must adapt to position themselves as the provider of choice. To truly meet these modern patient expectations, thrive in a competitive healthcare environment when margins are tighter than ever, and strengthen the continuum of care for better outcomes, health systems need to refocus their efforts.

Here are key insights to help health systems better enable their patients to access the specialized treatments and medications they need without having to leave the familiar setting of their hospital. 

Specialty and Infusion Services Are Growing Fast – But Leaving the Hospital 

Specialty pharmacy and infusion care are among the fastest-growing sectors in healthcare.² They focus on delivering complex, often high-cost medications that demand specialized administration.

• Specialty services typically involve medications for ongoing or rare conditions like cancer, multiple sclerosis and rheumatoid arthritis.
• Infusion services involve delivering these powerful medications directly into the bloodstream intravenously.

These services are essential because they help ensure patients receive precise, high-quality care tailored to their unique conditions, often leading to improved health and a better quality of life.

Despite the growth seen across specialty pharmacy and infusion care, health systems are experiencing increased leakage of prescriptions and patients — referring to specialty prescriptions being filled outside of the hospital’s pharmacy and infusion care being administered in privately-owned infusion centers. 

By keeping specialty pharmacy and infusion services within the hospital setting, health systems can provide patients with convenient access to the specialty drugs and infusion services they need, while improving patient satisfaction, trust, and ultimately, achieve better patient outcomes.

Keeping Care Connected Improves the Continuum of Care

Today's patients expect their healthcare experience to be on par with other modern services — convenient and tailored to their unique needs. When health systems are equipped with the tools and resources to build or enhance their service lines, they are positioning themselves as a preferred site of care that can meet modern patient expectations. In turn, this prevents fragmented care and creates smoother pathways that lead to more positive patient outcomes.

Patients benefit from fewer handoffs, shorter wait times and a familiar team that has immediate access to their health history, allowing for more informed decision making and timely adjustments to their therapy, while hospitals can build stronger patient relationships and improve adherence to treatment plans.

Speaking about optimizing these service lines, Ginger Thorpe, vice president and general manager of Pharmacy Solutions for Health Systems, explains, “It’s really about improving the patient journey — bettering the experience and the outcomes, which can start with well-designed programs.”

Complexities in Specialty and Infusion Can Be Overcome

There are a number of challenges health systems face in starting, managing or expanding their specialty and infusion service lines, from payer reimbursement mandates and increased competition to labor constraints and available capital. With a modernized, deliberately designed approach to these programs and the right strategic partner, health systems can begin shifting the conversation from challenge to opportunity.

As Prateek Bhatia, vice president and general manager of Intrafusion at McKesson, notes, “There are boundless opportunities for health systems to solve these challenges and ensure the patient gets excellent care under the guidance of the treating provider when they understand how significant the opportunity is and when they have the right strategic partner.”

Sources:
1.    Infusion Therapy Market Update
2.    What to expect in US healthcare in 2025 and beyond | McKinsey

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