2026 Health Care Outlook: Lee Ann Stember, NCPDP

By Lee Ann Stember, president and CEO of NCPDP

Across the country, pharmacists are redefining what it means to deliver care. They are counseling patients, monitoring chronic conditions and closing gaps in access to care. As their responsibilities expand, the health care system must evolve alongside them, removing barriers to information access and recognizing the essential role pharmacists play in improving outcomes and advancing patient well-being.

Over the past year, the National Council for Prescription Drug Programs (NCPDP) analyzed how to strengthen pharmacy’s role within the broader health care system. That work resulted in an updated three-year strategic plan focused on three key priorities: improving data exchange, fostering collaboration and innovation, and ensuring organizational excellence and sustainability. Together, these provide a clear framework for how we will advance interoperability, support the expanding clinical role of pharmacists and continue to drive efficiency across health care.

A look back: Advancing Clinical Data Exchange

Data exchange is at the core of connected care. To truly empower pharmacists as clinical providers, they must have timely access to the same patient data available to other members of the care team. Similarly, pharmacists can provide vital patient data to the patient’s care team, closing the loop for whole-person care. Our Strategic Planning Committee has been focused on advancing this bidirectional clinical data exchange utilizing NCPDP standards.

This work builds on our collaboration with the Sequoia Project and other multi-stakeholder efforts. Together, we have focused on expanding the flow of clinical data and making it easier for pharmacists to connect with the broader health information network. With the Sequoia Project specifically, we are developing use cases that illustrate how pharmacists apply clinical data in everyday practice, including medication management, chronic disease care and immunization programs. These examples will help the industry better understand the value pharmacists bring to the patient care team and why access to complete, timely health records is essential to that work. 

Our clinical data exchange strategic initiative continues to help the industry understand how NCPDP standards enable the secure, real-time exchange of information between pharmacists, prescribers, health plans and other health care organizations. These efforts are helping remove barriers that prevent pharmacists from fully participating in coordinated care.

Collaboration and Innovation in Action

NCPDP has always been a convener. Collaboration is at the heart of who we are. Through our work groups, task groups and initiatives such as NCPDP ColLAB initiative, we bring together all sectors of the health care industry to develop practical, consensus-based solutions to some of health care’s most pressing challenges. ColLAB will expand this work by creating structured roundtables and workflow demonstrations that allow members to explore real-world use cases and identify where new or updated standards are needed.

A strong example of this collaboration is our ongoing work to advance electronic prior authorization (ePA). For years, NCPDP has led the industry in improving the ePA process so health plans, providers and pharmacies can exchange real-time information seamlessly and reduce administrative burden. We are focused on increasing adoption of the ePA standard and improving automation so prior authorizations can be completed before the patient leaves the doctor’s office. We are also leading work with ASTP on the Pharmacy Product Availability Pilot, which strengthens our role as a thought leader in improving access, reducing delays and driving industry innovation.

Through these collective efforts, we are not only advancing interoperability but also reducing the cost of care.

Insights from our members helped us illustrate how NCPDP standards drive efficiency across health care, lowering administrative costs and improving care coordination and safety. These findings were recently summarized in an infographic that highlights measurable outcomes such as reduced provider callbacks, faster prescription processing and billions in savings through improved medication adherence.

Our Educational Summit, webinars, Annual Conference track sessions, and Innovation & Connection Hub continue to provide valuable opportunities for stakeholders to share insights, discuss real-world applications, and explore emerging areas such as value-based care, digital therapeutics and artificial intelligence. Each conversation helps move the industry closer to a health care system where data flows freely, enabling smarter and more connected care.

Organizational Excellence and Sustainability

At the core of our work is a commitment to keeping NCPDP strong, flexible and ready for the future. This year, NCPDP launched its refined vision — transforming health care through connected care — to ensure our priorities align with the evolving needs of our members and the industry. 

We are investing in the infrastructure and technology that will keep us moving forward, while welcoming new voices and perspectives across health care. Sustaining our leadership means staying innovative and ready to act as the industry continues to change.

Looking ahead: Strengthening Pharmacy’s Role in Patient Care

In the year ahead, we will focus on strengthening connections between pharmacists, providers and health plans. Through continued collaboration and data-sharing efforts, we are helping define how pharmacists can be fully integrated into the care team. Our efforts will continue to highlight how pharmacists’ expertise contributes directly to improved patient outcomes, and support interoperability and standardization to make that possible.

Transforming health care takes more than technology or policy change; it depends on practical solutions that improve how information moves across the care continuum. By bringing diverse perspectives together, we can strengthen data exchange and close communication gaps through scalable solutions that address real-world challenges and position pharmacy as an active driver of better health care.
Lee Ann Stember is president and CEO of NCPDP.