As the Vice President of Pharmacy Services at Oscar Health, Mara is responsible for all aspects of running and building the Oscar pharmacy services benefits. Prior to joining Oscar, Mara held leadership positions in operational roles at pharmacy benefit managers (PBMs) and pharmacies. She has also served as a consultant providing expert advisory services to healthcare clients including pharmaceutical manufacturers, industry trade organizations, PBMs, pharmacies and health plans.

How did you become an executive in the healthcare industry? Did you always have an interest in health care?

I did not set out on my career path intent on becoming an executive nor with a plan to work in healthcare. I had an opportunity to work in a medical office and that started my career in healthcare. I found that I had a desire to understand how the “back office” and broader processes of health care worked. I had a curiosity and drive to learn more and do more. I enjoyed building relationships and leading teams.

Throughout my career, I have sought out champions and mentors and I think that is a key component to any leadership journey. These have been both professional and personal relationships. We often overlook how important our personal support system is and how valuable it can be to have someone in your corner. To be successful at anything it takes a little bit of luck, a lot of tenacity, and passion.

You recently joined Oscar Health as Vice President, Pharmacy Services – congratulations! Can you share the story of how you found your new role? What made it a good fit for you?

An executive recruiting firm contacted me about the opportunity. While I was not sure that I was ready to make a move, I decided that it couldn’t hurt to have the conversation and learn more. Obviously, I liked what I heard and made the decision to pursue the opportunity and ultimately join Oscar. I was intrigued when I read the company’s background and culture statement. When I read the company’s vision and mission statements (Vision: We refactor healthcare to make great care cost less. Mission: Making a healthier life affordable and accessible to all.) and learned through the interview process how passionate and committed Oscar is to their vision and mission, I was inspired.

Another key factor for me was the opportunity to be part of a health plan, which is a new frontier for me in the familiar pharmacy services space where I have spent much of my career working in. I knew this would be an opportunity for me to learn, further develop my skills, and have an impact. I am just finishing up my first 90 days and I am so excited to be part of the Oscar team!

You’ve spent much of your career in close proximity to the pharmacy side of healthcare. What is the most positive change in the industry that you’ve seen over the course of your career? Where do you still see room for improvement?

Pharmacy is often the most frequently utilized healthcare service. We rely on our pharmacists and pharmacy technicians in ways that we do not even realize. The industry recognition in recent years of the critical role that the pharmacy community plays and the role that pharmacists in particular have in taking care of patients is a significant advancement in providing better outcomes.

There is a great need for interoperability in our healthcare system overall. We must find a better way to share patient data accurately across all providers (e.g., clinicians, health systems, pharmacies) so that we can improve the communication pathways and overall patient experience and outcomes that are often blocked by the challenges and gaps in sharing patient data across those entities. This includes providing patients and their representatives with access to this information so they can better advocate for themselves. While we have made some forward progress on this front, we need to move further and we need to move faster.

You’ve spent over a decade serving the National Council for Prescription Drug Programs, Inc. as chair of several committees and as a member of the Board of Trustees. How has this long-term association board involvement benefited you?

I became a member of NCPDP early in my career for a very tactical purpose: to better understand the pharmacy transactions and standards that the industry follows. NCPDP also provided me with leadership and development opportunities as well as a channel for networking opportunities. I have served on and led several committees over the years. These committees allowed me to gain experiences and knowledge that I would not have gotten in my “day job”. I was elected to and served as a member of the Board of Trustees for two terms and a total of seven years.

I have had many positive experiences and developed many relationships through this association. These areas that I am highlighting have had the greatest impact and presented the greatest opportunities for me, especially earlier on in my career. I learned to build a framework and culture of collaboration and to lead a group to gain consensus, which is not an easy feat when you have a multi-stakeholder forum of representatives from different parts of the industry including competitors who often have different views.

An opportunity to build a professional network that can serve you throughout your career is extremely valuable. I discovered my innate ability to connect with the right people, and the foundation of my network was initially built from relationships that I forged through my NCPDP membership. I have further bolstered and grown this through my WBL sisterhood. If you have not taken advantage of the connections available to you as a WBL member, I encourage you to do so.

Personally or professionally, what might the WBL network be surprised to know about you?

I did not take a traditional education path. I did not enjoy school. So much so that I found a way to accelerate my high school experience and complete the requirements in three years. Soon after completing my high school degree, I moved out on my own, determined to have a career (in what I was not sure) and support myself. I had been working part-time in a medical office as an office and medical assistant while I was in high school. This is where I met my first professional mentor. She believed in my potential and put her trust in me to take on a greater level of responsibility, even though I lacked the experience. She made a deal with me. She would give me a full-time position managing her practice on the condition that I took two classes per semester at the local community college, and that she would pay for those classes.

That was the start of my almost decade-long journey to my undergraduate degree. I moved a few times, across three different states, and held a few different positions all in healthcare during that journey. I was in my first job in the pharmacy space at a PBM when I completed my degree, a BS in Management graduating Magna Cume Laude. I am proud of that accomplishment, especially since I did this while working full-time in a position where I also traveled. My parents were my cheerleaders and also my loan officers on occasion, which I am so thankful for as I graduated with very little debt. I also had the support of a great boss, mentor, and CEO. Shortly after completing my degree, I moved into my first management position.