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COLORADO SPRINGS, Colo. — The Healthcare Distribution Management Association (HDMA) has changed its name to the Healthcare Distribution Alliance (HDA).
HDA president and chief executive officer John Gray announced the change at the opening general session of the association’s 2016 Business and Leadership Conference here in June. Additionally, HDA’s nonprofit charitable research foundation, the Center for Healthcare Supply Chain Research, is now the HDA Research Foundation.
John Gray
“Following two significant legislative victories [the Drug Supply Chain Security Act (DSCSA) and the Ensuring Patient Access and Effective Drug Enforcement Act of 2016 (S. 483), a bill to improve enforcement efforts related to prescription drug diversion and abuse] and a recent push into the global arena, the time was right to reconsider our brand — the visual identity as well as the name — and reposition the organization for the future,” said Gray. “While simplifying our name, the new Healthcare Distribution Alliance brand also reflects our organization’s strategic role as a supply chain leader and convener in advocacy and education.”
In the past decade, HDA’s successful advocacy work led to the enactment of the DSCSA, which preempted a 50-state patchwork of pharmaceutical pedigree laws, as well as the recent signing of S. 483, which addressed the prescription drug abuse epidemic.
The organization also brought its educational offerings overseas, by hosting the annual International Pharmaceutical Distribution Conference in Beijing (2014), Brussels (2015) and London (September 2016).
This marks the third name change for the alliance. Founded as the Western Wholesale Druggists’ Association (WWDA) in 1876, in Indianapolis, it became the National Wholesale Druggists’ Association in 1882 and HDMA in 2001. The HDA Research Foundation was originally founded as the NWDA Research and Education Foundation in 1980.
“Throughout HDA’s 140-year history, the health care distribution industry has been called upon to adapt and lead through periods of change,” Gray added. “In these times we have actively engaged with our supply chain partners to achieve our goals. The word ‘Alliance,’ in particular, better reflects our role as a convener of the supply chain — in the United States and now abroad — with the vision and persistence to successfully navigate these changes.
“Further, our position at the center of the health care supply chain allows us to forge key partnerships for the benefit of our ultimate customer — the patient — which is reflected in our new tagline, ‘Patients Move Us.’ While distributors often do not come into direct contact with patients, we recognize that our industry and the supply chain would not exist if patients did not rely on, and benefit from, our services and expertise.”
Along with the Leadership Conference announcement, the new name was announced in a weeklong print and digital ad campaign appearing in Politico.
“The board of directors is proud to unveil the new HDA,” said chairman Ted Scherr, who is also president and CEO of Dakota Drug Inc. “HDA is well positioned for the future, as it will continue to build on its 140-year history of collaboration and supply chain leadership.”
