Molly Billstein Leber

Molly’s Story

Molly Billstein Leber, Pharm.D., BCPS, FASHP, DPLA is the Manager of Medication Policy and Formulary Management for the Yale New Haven System in New Haven, Connecticut. She received her Doctor of Pharmacy degree from the University of Montana and completed a PGY1 residency at Yale New Haven Hospital. Leber has also completed the ASHP Foundation’s Pharmacy Leadership Academy and is currently enrolled in the Master of Business Administration program at New England College.

Leber is active at both the state and national level. She has served as a board member for the Connecticut Society of Health System Pharmacists, where she received the Paul Pierpaoli Award. Within ASHP she has served as the Director-at-Large for the Section of Inpatient Care Practitioners Executive Committee, member of the Council on Education and Workforce Development, and member of the Section Advisory Group on Medication Safety and Advancing Pharmacy Practice with Technicians (APPT).

Overview of Facility/Health System

Yale New Haven Health includes Bridgeport Hospital, Greenwich Hospital, Lawrence + Memorial Hospital, Yale New Haven Hospital and Westerly Hospital and a physician foundation, Northeast Medical Group. Yale New Haven Health has a total of 2,563 licensed beds which Yale New Haven Health System had over 114,000 inpatient discharges in Fiscal Year 2016, 1.9 million outpatient encounters. Yale New Haven Hospital (YNHH) is the largest hospitals in the health system with 1,541-beds and as the primary teaching hospital for the Yale Schools of Medicine and Nursing.

Significant Projects

Leber’s career focuses on formulary standardization and drug use policy. Through this work Yale New Haven Health was able to standardize the formulary across the Health System and realize significant reductions the in pharmaceutical budget. By developing the infrastructure to make System formulary decisions, Yale New Haven Health was able to declare all biosimilars therapeutically equivalent to the reference drug for the FDA approved indications, allowing contracting discussion to occur upon commercial availability.

Initial Involvement in ASHP

"I became involved with ASHP so I could actively participate in the advancement of the pharmacy profession. Graduating from pharmacy school, the majority of my rotations were all at the same site so I had a very limited view of health system pharmacy. I joined ASHP to take advantage of the opportunities to collaborate and develop new professional relationships, and learn from others."

Advice for Someone New to Your Specialty Area

"To be successful in the Management of Drug Use Policy, it is essential that you have a good clinical background. By having a defined practice setting and involvement in patient care, you learn how to interact with other professions and understand what is involved in making a change. Develop a great working relationship with the IT Department. Understanding how to automate or hardwire a process will ensure the change is able to be sustained."

Value of ASHP

"My ASHP membership has been invaluable. Being involved in ASHP has given me so many opportunities that have allowed me to advance in my career and allowed me to develop relationships with colleagues across the country. ASHP has so many resources available for its members and the staff is always willing to help."

"ASHP provides valuable advocacy for the pharmacy profession to ensure the frontline pharmacist is able to practice at the top of their license. The ASHP residency program has been essential in training our new practitioners to continue to advance the profession. In addition, ASHP has provided numerous opportunities for pharmacists to develop their leadership skills."