Accounting Firms Create Specialty Niche to Serve Pharmacy Industry

CohnReznick LLP, one of the largest accounting, tax, and advisory firms in the U.S., has created a collaborative market solution with Frier & Levitt, a national boutique healthcare law firm providing regulatory, transactional, and litigation advice, and CSI Specialty Group, a globally recognized industry thought leader that provides innovative specialty pharmacy consulting, workforce planning, and talent acquisition solutions. The alliance will provide a comprehensive array of services tailored to the specialty pharmacy industry.

With the rapid growth in the industry, specialty pharmacies and manufacturers of specialty pharmaceuticals face significant challenges in acquiring growth capital and developing and managing their talent pool, while simultaneously maintaining regulatory compliance. This environment necessitates increased collaboration between service providers. Recognizing the industry need and the depth of pharmacy expertise within each firm, CohnReznick, Frier & Levitt, and CSI Specialty Group have aligned to bring joint services, educational programs, and guidance to the specialty pharmacy industry, as well as co-market services to their respective client bases.

Led by industry icon Suzette DiMascio, CSI Specialty Group, is a WBE Certified leadership consulting firm based in Central Florida – the birthplace of specialty pharmacy. The Firm’s award-winning services span from specialty pharmacy build-outs to manufacturer drug launches. Capitalizing on the team’s unique specialty pharmacy lineage of over 183 combined years of experience, CSI’s team is uniquely positioned to provide companies with the insight and industry expertise to contribute to their clients’ corporate goals and make a real impact on organizational scalability and growth.

“We are excited about what this alliance means for the ability of our allied firms to continue to expand, enable, and innovate to deliver tailored services to our specialty pharmacy clients,” said Suzette DiMascio, Founder and President/CEO of CSI Specialty Group.

Headquartered in Pine Brook, NJ, Frier & Levitt LLC (dba Frier Levitt) is a 20-plus attorney national healthcare boutique law firm with an industry focus on pharmacy law. Through litigation in state and federal courts, the firm has successfully required pharmacy benefit managers (PBMs) to permit specialty pharmacies admission into restricted PBM networks. The Firm has represented thousands of pharmacies across the country drawing upon their lawyers’ pragmatic industry experience in such prior roles as hospital administration, clinical practice, professional licensing, and billing.

“Specialty pharmacies are among the most regulated entities in the country and with all PBMs owning their own specialty pharmacies, network exclusions are on the rise,” states Jonathan Levitt, Co-Founding Partner. “Aligning with other professionals committed to the specialty pharmacy industry creates a strong value proposition to help the industry balance regulatory compliance, with payor requirements and business growth goals.”

CohnReznick’s Healthcare Industry Practice provides a wide range of healthcare institutions with the audit, tax, and consulting services they need to navigate change, streamline costs, and maintain the infrastructure and investment necessary for long-term success. The Practice serves the specialty pharmacy community, hospitals and health systems, medical practices, community health centers, long-term care facilities, and others across in the medical community.

“With decades serving the healthcare industry, CohnReznick’s robust accounting, tax, and financial advisory services are an exciting complement to the legal, consulting, and talent management expertise of Frier Levitt and CSI Specialty Group,” stated Richard Puzo, a CohnReznick partner and the Firm’s Healthcare Industry Practice Leader. “With the record rise in U.S. spending on specialty prescription drugs last year, specialty pharmacies need business advisors that leverage deep industry expertise to contribute new ideas and best practices to help them scale operations while maintaining regulatory compliance.”