An Interview with Amber Walker
We recently interviewed Amber Walker, Vice President, Rare and Orphan Specialty Market Development, about what factors are currently shaping specialty pharmacy and rare disease.
As therapies get more complex, where are manufacturers and specialty pharmacies putting their focus?
Access, and the patient and prescriber experience. I’m also watching what manufacturers want from their specialty pharmacy partners.
What theme keeps coming up, and what’s changed compared to a year ago?
The conversation keeps returning to identifying barriers earlier, reducing friction, and creating clear ownership throughout the patient journey. There’s also more emphasis on demonstrating measurable value, not just describing capabilities. Clinical interventions, adherence, access support, and patient engagement all need to translate into outcomes that can be measured and communicated.
Which technologies are getting the most attention?
AI automation and digital workflow tools. What stands out is that the conversation isn’t about having new technology. It’s about applying it to a specific workflow problem, like test claims, refill communications, and administrative processes.
How are organizations using technology differently than a year ago?
The focus is shifting from technology as a standalone capability to technology embedded in everyday workflow. The goal is to remove administrative burden so teams can spend more time on higher value patient and provider interactions.
What role will AI play, and where does it improve patient care?
AI can automate repetitive work, identify where intervention is needed, and help teams work more efficiently. In rare and complex diseases especially, the value is in creating more capacity for human interaction, not replacing it. Every touch point you streamline gives the care team more time for the patients who need personal intervention.
What should manufacturers be measuring?
Time to therapy, treatment delays, and interruptions, rather than only whether a prescription was filled.
What are manufacturers asking of specialty pharmacies right now?
Stronger patient support capabilities, meaningful data and measurable outcomes, coordinated access support, and better integration with providers. They want visibility into what happened across the patient journey and where barriers occurred, not just whether a prescription was dispensed.
What separates a strong specialty pharmacy partner from the rest?
Clear ownership, defined escalation pathways, and consistent communication. Technology matters, but execution across the process determines whether a patient experiences a delay.
What is the patient experience like today?
The complexity of our industry too easily becomes the patient’s problem. Coverage restrictions, financial assistance, and multiple hand-offs can all sit between a prescription and actually starting therapy.
What should the industry do about access barriers and onboarding friction?
Identify barriers early. Rather than measuring success at the end of the process, we need visibility into where patients are getting stuck, and the ability to step in before that becomes a significant delay or interruption.
How would you explain the patient experience to someone outside the industry?
Patients shouldn’t have to understand the complexity behind getting their medication. Our goal is to help manage that complexity for them and make the experience feel coordinated.
If you had one line to leave readers with, what would it be?
Getting a prescription written is only the beginning. The real measure is how quickly we get the patient on therapy and support them on therapy. As therapies become more complex, the patient experience should become simpler, not more complex.
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Want to learn how we support patients and manufacturers? Contact us today: https://vytlone.com/partner-with-specialty-pharmacy/.