Armada Forms New Specialty Pharmacy Association; Plans Launch at Upcoming Annual Summit

FLORHAM PARK, N.J., Jan. 31, 2013 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Armada Health Care (Armada) announced the formation of the Specialty Pharmacy Association of America (SPAARx), a free-standing, national organization representing the professional and business interests of the specialty pharmacy industry. This new organization is being formed in response to the overwhelming volume of requests from numerous stakeholders asking that Armada take the lead and help fill this void in the healthcare marketplace.

The Specialty Pharmacy Association of America (SPAARx) will be neutral to all industry vendors. It will be governed by a board of directors comprised of executives from a diverse group of specialty pharmacies and related organizations. Board members will establish the agenda for shaping the Association's mission, objectives and future activities.

The official launch of the Specialty Pharmacy Association of America (SPAARx) will occur at the 9th Annual Armada Specialty Pharmacy Summit which is scheduled for the week of May 6th in Las Vegas, NV. Total participation at this year's Summit is projected to reach a record 2,500 specialty pharmacy industry attendees which will rank the Armada Summit among other highly prominent national pharmacy conferences.

Armada Summit attendees will be invited to join the new Association as charter members. Ultimately, the new Association will include thousands of individual members, specialty pharmacy corporations and other related industry organizations from all 50 states. The unifying goal of the Association is to preserve and promote the common business interests of specialty pharmacy along with fostering professional and personal growth opportunities within the industry.

"Over the past several months, numerous industry stakeholders have encouraged Armada to take the lead and create a new, industry-aligned association for specialty pharmacy. After much consideration, we responded with the plan to utilize our Annual Summit as the springboard to develop and grow the new association," said Lawrence Irene, Armada CEO. Irene added, "We see this as a natural progression for the evolution of our annual conference as it continues to grow. The reputation, size and scope of our annual conference will give the new Association instant credibility in the marketplace. It is the perfect venue as it provides a neutral and unified focal point for the rapidly expanding specialty pharmacy industry."

Over the past decade, Armada has grown its annual business Summit into the nation's largest conference for the specialty pharmacy industry. Continuing its evolution, Armada welcomes all specialty pharmacy stakeholders and organizations to attend the 2013 Summit.

About Armada:

Armada Health Care, LLC (Armada) is the industry's largest specialty pharmacy group purchasing and contracting organization. Armada provides comprehensive and cost effective access to the nation's $100 billion specialty pharmacy industry. Armada offers pharmacy providers, manufacturers, health plans and wholesale distributors a total channel management solution through customized patient programs, prescription-data-management services, online platforms and unique purchasing agreements on specialty pharmacy products. Armada also organizes and hosts the nation's largest annual conference for specialty pharmacy stakeholders.

For more information about Armada, please visit http://www.armadahealthcare.com

The Armada Health Care, LLC logo is available at http://www.globenewswire.com/newsroom/prs/?pkgid=6922

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Armada Forms New Specialty Pharmacy Association; Plans Launch at Upcoming Annual Summit