National Advisory Board

Senior Vice President, Outcomes
National Advisory Board member

Kevin Boesen, PharmD, MBA, is a proud 1996 graduate of the University of Arizona College of Pharmacy and a pharmacy leader and entrepreneur with experience in multiple areas of pharmacy, including community, industry, academia, and technology. Dr. Boesen was the founder and CEO of SinfoniaRx, a national leader in medication therapy management technology and services. Prior the sale of SinfoniaRx to Tabula Rasa HealthCare in 2017, SinfoniaRx had 1,000 employees and delivered services to more than 50 million patients nationwide. In 2023, Dr.

Coit Financial Group
National Advisory Board member

R. Ken Coit graduated from the University of Arizona with a bachelor's degree in pharmacy in 1967, but practiced pharmacy for just three years before beginning a career in investing and financial planning. Ken completed an MBA degree from Pepperdine University while developing his business. He is founder and head of Coit Financial and he is a private real estate investment banker who specializes in leveraged, multi-family properties located in California, Oregon, Washington, and Colorado.

Chief Executive Officer, Banner Pharmacy Services
National Advisory Board Member

Russ Funk was appointed CEO of Banner Pharmacy Services in July 2018 following a broad range of leadership experiences within the healthcare market to include activities throughout the continuum of care focused on innovative strategies and developing new products/solutions that enhance quality of life for both the patients and caregivers. A Healthcare Leader and Strategist who can lead sales, operations and business development activities. Accomplished at increasing revenue growth, operational efficiency and market share.

Executive Director, AZ Board of Pharmacy
National Advisory Board member

Kam Gandhi received his Doctor of Pharmacy degree from the College of Pharmacy at the University of Illinois in Chicago. He is currently the Executive Director of the Arizona State Board of Pharmacy. Kam has extensive experience and knowledge in the community pharmacy arena having been a District Pharmacy Manager of Albertsons/Sav-On in the Arizona/California/Nevada/Texas/Utah market. One of Kam’s favorite quotes is, “You must be the change you wish to see in the world.” –Gandhi. Kam describes himself as a leader who leads by example.

Co-Founder, Modern Health Inc.
National Advisory Board member

Ira Halpern co-founded  ModernHEALTHcare Inc. in 1975 and co-founded modern HOMEcare, Inc, in 1989. In his role as president of Modern HEALTH, he is primarily responsible for strategic business development, sales, and marketing. He holds a BS in pharmacy from UA and a BA in business administration from California State University in Northridge.

 

Hogan Healthcare Consulting, President
National Advisory Board member

Chris Hogan operates a consulting practice designed to support healthcare businesses in understanding and accessing the health insurance marketplace. A healthcare executive and licensed pharmacist, Hogan has over 40 years experience in the Healthcare space including hospital, retail, Medicaid, Medicare, Affordable Care Act and commercial insurance most recently as the Chief Pharmacy officer and vice president of pharmacy management at Blue Cross Blue Shield of Arizona. Hogan’s avocation is volunteering for non-profit organizations in his community.

CEO, Modern Health Inc.
National Advisory Board member

Richard Katz has been the chief executive officer of ModernHEALTH companies since he began the company in 1975. ModernHEALTH sells specialty pharmacy products and services to healthcare providers and users. Currently, the company specializes in prescription services for disease-payment and service-specific needs. Richard completed a master’s in public administration from the University of Southern California in 1973. He also has a bachelor of science in pharmacy from the University of Arizona.

President, Biotechnologies
President/CEO, Research Corporation Technologies
National Advisory Board member

Shaun Kirkpatrick is the president and chief executive officer of Research Corporation Technologies (RCT), based in Tucson. Shaun oversees RCT’s BioVentures investment portfolio and technology department, and the licensing of activities in North America, Europe, and Australia. Shaun received his master’s degree in international economics and science/technology in international economics from Johns Hopkins University School of Advanced International Studies.

Vice President, Board of Pharmacy Advocacy & Regulatory Affairs, CVS Health
National Advisory Board Member

Sandra Leal, PharmD, MPH, FAPhA is Vice President for Board of Pharmacy Advocacy & Regulatory Affairs. She served as the 166^th President of the American Pharmacists Association (APhA). Dr. Leal has had diverse experience as a pharmacist, medical director, and public health clinician. She began her career at CVS Health as VP of Clinical Strategy and Collaborative Innovation with Aetna’s Medical Affairs team then as VP of Pharmacy Practice Innovation and Advocacy with CVS Pharmacy prior to her current role.

National Advisory Board member

Mobeen is the Healthcare Supervisor of Pharmacy Operations for Walgreens Co., based in Southern Arizona. Mobeen is responsible for building team effectiveness in Pharmacy/Healthcare, using pharmacy knowledge to improve patient health outcomes, implementing pharmacy/healthcare strategy, and championing the patient experience. Mobeen joined Walgreens in 2006 as pharmacy technician. During his tenure, he has held various positions, ascending from pharmacy manager to healthcare supervisor in 2018.

President, Djinnistan Holdings, LLC
National Advisory Board Member

John Musil is the founder of Avella Specialty Pharmacy, which was acquired by UnitedHealthCare in 2018. Avella is a national specialty pharmacy focused on clinical management of patients with rare diseases. John is a 1994 graduate of the UA College of Pharmacy and a recipient of the 2010 Young Professional Achievement Award given by the Arizona Alumni Association. In 2012, Avella received the Arizona Corporate Excellence Award as the fastest-growing privately held company based in Arizona and was a twelve-time recipient as one of the 5,000 fastest-growing companies in America by Inc.

Consultant
National Advisory Board member

Cathleen Peterson-Layne, PhD, MD received a Bachelor of Science in Pharmacy in 1988 from the University of Arizona. After graduation, she practiced retail pharmacy while pursuing a PhD in neuropharmacology, then an MD at Duke University. Dr. Peterson-Layne has practiced as an anesthesiologist for over 25 years, achieving the rank of full professor. As founder of Being inCredible(TM), Dr. Peterson-Layne works with leaders, in healthcare and beyond, to create and lead extraordinary teams.

CEO, Canyon Vista Medical Center
National Advisory Board Member

Shaun Phillips is the CEO at Canyon Vista Medical Center, part of LifePoint Health.  Prior to joining LifePoint, he spent 10 years in executive leadership for Bronson Healthcare Group, a not-for-profit, integrated health system operating in southwest Michigan and northern Indiana. 

Additionally, he had nearly 10 years of experience in various pharmacy leadership roles at Trinity Health, a multi-state, Catholic healthcare organization.   

National Advisory Board Member
Chief Science Officer, Critical Path Institute

Klaus Romero is the Chief Science Officer at the Critical Path Institute (C-Path). Dr. Romero, a clinical pharmacologist and epidemiologist with more than 17 years combined experience in academic and pharmaceutical clinical research, translational sciences, pharmacometrics, modeling and simulation and pharmacoepidemiology, has been with C-Path since December 2007.

National Advisory Board Member
Founder and President, Scheeren HealthCare LLC

Prof. Scheeren is an accomplished global executive and leader in R&D and Regulatory Affairs. His pharmaceutical industry career spans more than 35 years in R&D and global leadership positions in the US, Europe and Asia.

Dean, R. Ken Coit College of Pharmacy
Howard J. Schaeffer Endowed Chair in Pharmaceutical Sciences
Professor, Pharmacology & Toxicology
National Advisory Board Member

Rick G. Schnellmann, PhD, is dean endowed chair of the University of Arizona R. Ken Coit College of Pharmacy and holds the Howard J Schaeffer in Pharmaceutical Sciences Endowed Chair. A leading pharmacologist, researcher and drug discovery entrepreneur, he joined the UA in August 2016 from the Medical University of South Carolina.

National Advisory Board Member
Chairman, High Throughput Genomics
Co-Founder/CSO, BioSpyder Technologies Inc.

Bruce Seligmann is the co-founder and CSO of BioSpyder Technologies, Inc., and is conducting research in collaboration with the University of Arizona Cancer Center. He's also the co-founder, director, chief science officer and vice president of research at High Throughput Genomics based in Tucson.

National Advisory Board Member
Professor Emertus

Dr. I. Glenn Sipes is Professor Emeritus at the University of Arizona. While at Arizona, his research program focused on the biotransformation of xenobiotics and on chemical-induced liver and ovarian injury. He authored over 250 research publications and was a co-editor-in-chief of Comprehensive Toxicology (13 volumes). For 29 years he served as head of the Departments of Pharmacology and Toxicology at the UA College of Pharmacy and of Pharmacology in the UA College of Medicine.

Owner, Desert Life Pharmacy
National Advisory Board Member

Brianne Spaeth, Pharm D, is the owner and Pharmacist-in-charge at Desert Life Pharmacy in SaddleBrooke, where she strives to promote a strong community focused patient care environment.

National Advisory Board Member
President & CEO, NCPDP

Lee Ann Stember is President & CEO of NCPDP, a not-for-profit multi-stakeholder forum for developing healthcare business solutions, including ANSI-accredited standards for electronic exchange of healthcare information. As President & CEO for nearly four decades, she has led NCPDP to continued success in its transformative role in pharmacy services, creating and promoting adoption of consensus-based standards and best practices that improve patient safety and decrease costs.

President & COO, Critical Path Institute
National Advisory Board member

National Advisory Board Member
Retired, Director, Eli Lilly and Company

William Wheeler was the director of national accounts at Eli Lilly and Company from 1982 to 1997.  He worked at Eli Lilly his entire professional life, beginning as an associate in 1965. William holds a bachelor’s degree in pharmacy from the University of Arizona and a master’s of business administration from Arizona State University. He has served on the Advisory Board for the National Employers Group. William was an officer in the U.S. Air Force Medical Service Corps from 1962 to 1965.