Cencora report flags payer restrictions as key barrier to health system pharmacy growth

Cencora published a Fall 2026 Pharmacy Outlook survey of 110+ health-system pharmacy leaders on growth priorities amid payer restrictions. More than half described strategy as growth-oriented, led by pharmacy financial performance and revenue capture at 87%. Biosimilar adoption and formulary optimization followed at 85%; specialty pharmacy expansion and infusion growth each registered 79%. Patient access remained constrained: 69% of specialty prescriptions were still dispensed externally, driven by payer network limits at 77%. Cell and gene therapy readiness lagged: 100% of adopters involved pharmacy, yet only 5% reported pharmacy leads program management. Disclaimer: This news brief was created by Public Technologies (PUBT) using generative artificial intelligence. While PUBT strives to provide accurate and timely information, this AI-generated content is for informational purposes only and should not be interpreted as financial, investment, or legal advice. Cencora Inc. published the original content used to generate this news brief on October 14, 2026, and is solely responsible for the information contained therein. (C)