Partners Rx Management, LLC


	About Us History Philosophy Services Key Executives Contact Info Join Our Family News

Quick Links

Mail Order Form
Prescription Drug Claim Form
Specialty Drug Order Form
Formulary

Find a pharmacy

Search here for the Partners Rx participating pharmacy nearest you.

More Info

HIPAA Privacy
Sign up to receive important updates and information via email.

Meet a different kind of PBM.

We use that statement often and here is why:

Open-book financial management—There are no hidden deals or financial influences that could affect the cost of our clients’ prescription benefit plans.

Accountable—We pride ourselves in producing the lowest drug trend in the industry. Our goals and objectives are fully aligned with our clients. We further qualify our accountability by consistently providing the quality of service demanded by this highly competitive marketplace. We are an industry-leading pharmacy benefit management company. We prove this by achieving the Lowest Total Cost for our clients.

Consultative management—The PRx team consists of highly skilled and experienced veterans from across the PBM industry. Our people know pharmacy benefit management. We spend an extraordinary amount of time with our clients helping them maximize the value of their investment in a prescription benefit for their members.

We invite you to explore this site to get to know us a little better. Find out what we mean when we say, “We’re in this business together.”

A History of Trust.

Partners Rx was organized in 2001 during a turbulent time in the PBM industry. The cost of prescription drugs was escalating rapidly and prescription benefit management was growing more complex. Founders, Mark Mertel and Bob Field saw an opportunity to start a PBM that aligned its goals and objectives with its clients to reduce costs and build true partnerships.

From the very beginning, Partners Rx operated with a business model that embraced two important concepts: an open-book approach with its business partners, plus a prescription benefits management (PBM) model that focuses on controlling drug plan expenditures by managing the drug mix to the Lowest Total Cost. Today, the marketplace is following PRx’s lead in many respects. The difference is we have been utilizing our Lowest Total Cost model from our inception, putting us far ahead of the curve with demonstrated, proven results.

We have a strong and collaborative strategic partner in Prescription Solutions. Our strategic partner manages the benefits of more than 10 million members nationwide, including over 6 million Medicare Part D recipients. They process more than 27 million claims per month. Fully aligned with the Partners Rx Lowest Total Cost model, Prescription Solutions’ roots are in managed care, which offers our clients a partnership that understands the business needs for total pharmacy and medical management. We use this strength to best manage the drug mix and reduce drug ingredient costs by an average of 9.5% for our partner clients.

We receive the benefit of competitive pricing on medications and pass it along to our clients. And we have the advantage of the latest technological systems to accommodate the most complex clinical programs, such as Medicare Part D.

Since day one, the Partners Rx team has taken every step forward with its core belief in hand, “We’re in this business together.”

A Different Approach.

Partners Rx (PRx) set out to change the buying patterns that were deeply anchored in the pharmacy benefit management (PBM) industry. You may be familiar with the process of evaluating PBMs by a spreadsheet comparison that primarily looks at a few pricing components such as AWP discounts, dispensing fees and minimum rebate guarantees. Discount and fees only represent about 5% of the drug expenditure. What should matter to you, the plan sponsor, is the average cost of a therapeutic category and what drugs are actually being utilized. By focusing on drug mix and costs by therapeutic class, we have successfully maintained the lowest drug cost trends in the industry.

Partners Rx operates in a full disclosure and open book management environment to ensure that we align our goals and objectives with those of our clients. This openness with our clients has fostered the atmosphere of trust we enjoy today.

Our partnership strategy reduces the complexity of prescription benefit management. It encourages the exchange of ideas to solve problems together. Other PBMs may sell value through high discounts, low administrative fees, low dispense fees and large rebate payments. We see value in competitive pricing strategies and rebates on appropriate medications, but at PRx , we focus on drug mix, the greatest slice of the drug cost pie by far at 95%. The question we ask ourselves everyday is how can we manage the drug mix better to further our clients’ goal of achieving the Lowest Total Cost? Partners Rx has demonstrated that its strategy has proven to be successful delivering trends below industry averages in total pharmacy spend.

Mission Statement

The Partners Rx Mission Statement

At Partners Rx, we put our clients’ needs first by providing the most clinically appropriate medications at the lowest possible cost. “We’re in this business together.”...this is more than just words; it’s the spirit of our organization.

Management as a Service.

The greatest value we can offer our partner-clients is the savings they realize through the services we provide.We help you manage your prescription benefit plans by offering a comprehensive suite of services. Here are a few:

National Retail Pharmacy Network
Fully Integrated Mail Order Services
Specialty Rx
Claims Processing
Account Management
Client Services
Web-based Programs and Services
Wellness Programs
Clinical Management Programs
Prospective, Concurrent and Retrospective Drug Utilization Review
Formulary and Rebate Management Services
Step Therapy
Prior Authorization
Disease Management Programs
Comprehensive Reporting Packages and Analytics Capabilities

We want to make sure you are getting the most comprehensive set of prescription benefit management programs and services and the greatest return on investment for your prescription benefit management dollars.

Key Executives

Mark Mertel, Chairman and Co-Founder
Robert Field, President, MBA, CEO and Co-Founder
Edward T. Printy, CPA, Chief Financial Officer
Lori Bymark, MSIA, Senior Vice President of Operations
Matthew Mertel, MBA, Chief Information Officer
Matthew P. Ward, Chief Marketing Officer, Senior VP of Sales
Kiley Ward, Senior Vice President of Business Development
Richard Bullard, RPh, Chief Pharmacy Officer

Mark Mertel, Chairman and Co-Founder

Mr. Mertel has been the Chairman of Partners Rx Management, LLC since co-founding the company in 2001.

Mark created Partners Rx because he believed there was a need in the market place for a fast and flexible PBM that delivered world class service, put its clients' needs first and was totally transparent. Today, Partners Rx has grown into one of the largest privately held PBMs in the country and these principles are still the keys to its success. In addition to Partners Rx, Mr. Mertel's entrepreneurial career over the past 40 years includes the ownership of a benefit consulting company, third party administrator, utilization management company, general agency, managing general underwriter, a discount prescription drug card company and a prescription drug analytics company.

Mr. Mertel is married with four children and nine grandchildren. He holds a BA in Business from Alfred University.

Key Executives

Robert Field, President, MBA, CEO and Co-Founder

Mr. Field directs the strategic positioning and the day-to-day operations of the company, having co-founded the company in 2001.

Mr. Field possesses more than 30 years of experience in the PBM industry, spending 11 years as a key executive with PCS (now CVS Caremark), the last five years as Executive Vice President and General Manager. While with PCS, Mr. Field championed developing the industry's first online, real-time claims processing system (RECAP®), revolutionizing the pharmacy claims processing industry.

Following his career at PCS, Mr. Field founded Perform Cost Management and led the organization as President and CEO. Perform grew to more than 3 million members in three years. Mr. Field spent several years as a consultant in the PBM arena working with large managed care plans and PBMs before co-founding Partners Rx.

Mr. Field served on the Board of the National Council for Prescription Drug Plans (NCPDP) for several years and is a past Chairman. He earned his BA in Economics from Northwestern University and MBA from Rockhurst College.

Key Executives

Edward T. Printy, CPA, Chief Financial Officer

As Chief Financial Officer, Mr. Printy's financial planning and analysis expertise is a critical component of the Partners Rx executive management team.

Mr. Printy has enjoyed a successful career as a financial manager in the manufacturing, real estate development, and health insurance industries. His primary functions have been in the operations environment with a strong focus on analysis, planning, and budgeting activities.

Mr. Printy became a Certified Public Accountant in the state of Arizona in 1980 and is a member of the Arizona Society of CPAs. He holds a BA in Marketing from Marquette University and earned an MBA with a concentration in Finance from the University of Northern Iowa.

Key Executives

Matthew Mertel, MBA, Chief Information Officer

Matthew Mertel is the Partners Rx Chief Information Officer and is responsible for the selection, deployment and maintenance of our information technology assets.

Before joining Partners Rx, Matthew was a management consultant for Cap Gemini Ernst & Young. As a consultant he specialized in IT-driven business strategies for health care companies. His forward-thinking IT expertise consistently keeps Partners Rx one step ahead of the technology curve.

Matthew holds an MBA from the University of Chicago Booth School of Business.

Key Executives

Matthew Ward, Chief Marketing Officer, Senior VP of Sales

Mr. Ward is responsible for planning, staffing, and managing all sales and marketing functions.

Mr. Ward has served as Partners Rx Chief Marketing Officer and Senior Vice President of Sales since the company's inception in 2001. He has 15 years experience in stop loss, risk management and pharmacy benefit management. During his tenure at Partners Rx, he has successfully positioned Partners Rx as an industry leader in prescription benefit management with a powerful delivery model that controls costs more efficiently, improve outcomes and increases member satisfaction. The business model is a significant advantage over other PBMs and has provided Partners Rx clients with the insight, data integrity and the best information, resources and services possible.

Mr. Ward earned his BS in Economics and Business Administration from Fort Lewis College.

Key Executives

Kiley Ward, Senior Vice President of Business Development

Ms. Ward is the Senior Vice President of Business Development for Partners Rx, responsible for overall business growth in the self-funded market.

In the business development role, Ms. Ward formulates and executes business development plans in new and existing business regions, using a proven approach that has helped Partners Rx increase client satisfaction and deliver lasting value.

Ms. Ward has more than 20 years of experience in the health care industry, having held a variety of senior positions at a TPA and a national managing general underwriter. With a career focused on the management of self-funded and partially self-funded plans, Ms. Ward is a well-regarded industry expert. This experience and insight enables her to work proactively with self-funded clients ranging in size from small businesses to large corporations, to create the most effective plans for their membership.

Key Executives

Lori Bymark, MSIA, Senior Vice President of Operations

As Senior Vice President of Operations, Ms. Bymark is responsible for Partners Rx operational and account management functions, which includes executive oversight of account management, client-member services, vendor management, and analytics to ensure the highest level of service to Partners Rx clients.

Ms. Bymark has spent more than 25 years in health care management, where she has built a diverse portfolio of experience in pharmacy benefit management, pharmaceutical manufacturing, health plan administration, health care service technology, and as an industry representative on cost trends and innovative management tools. Prior to joining Partners Rx, Lori served in various roles at PCS Health Systems (now CVS Caremark) including Vice President of Product Management/Development and Vice President of Clinical Services. In addition, she held management roles at MedVantx, Inc. and Eli Lilly and Company after beginning her healthcare career with Physicians of Minnesota (now UnitedHealthcare).

Ms. Bymark earned a BA in Political Science from Gustavus Adolphus College graduating Magna Cum Laude and a MS in Industrial Administration with Academic Honors from the Krannert School of Management at Purdue University.

Key Executives

Richard Bullard, RPh, Chief Pharmacy Officer

As Chief Pharmacy Officer, Mr. Bullard, is responsible for the clinical oversight of Partners Rx pharmacy benefit management programs.

Mr. Bullard leads the development of clinical programs to improve member health through an integrated approach to health care, capitalizing on innovations in medicine, pharmacy and information technology. He also provides support to the account management teams, client services, analytics, marketing and sales. His unique perspective and expertise bring a powerful mix of clinical, business and customer service skills that advance Partners Rx pharmacy solutions for clients and their members.

Joining Partners Rx in 2004, Mr. Bullard brought more than 33 years of health care industry experience with him. His professional and business experience draws from community pharmacy ownership, hospital pharmacy, consultant to long term care pharmacy and managing the pharmacy program for a large regional multi-specialty medical group. During the most recent 14 years, Mr. Bullard held PBM industry management and executive roles serving client and member health care benefit needs.

Mr. Bullard earned a BS in Pharmacy from the Massachusetts College of Pharmacy, and has been a licensed pharmacist for 40 years. He serves as Adjunct Faculty at Midwestern University College of Pharmacy, Glendale, AZ and is an active member in the Academy of Managed Care Pharmacy (AMCP) serving on Schools of Pharmacy, Membership and Audit Committees, Peer Reviewer for the Journal of Managed Care Pharmacy and as a Diplomat to the Midwestern University College of Pharmacy.

Join our family.

Partners Rx is a different kind of PBM, so we’re interested in working with people who think differently. If you think you want to be in this business together, please contact Human Resources for opportunities to join our family.