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VISN 10 Non-Formulary Clinical Pharmacist

Department of Veterans Affairs
Veterans Health Administration
Veterans Health Administration

Summary

The VISN Non-Formulary Clinical Pharmacist holds a position of high visibility and is responsible for adjudicating requests for the VISN 10 Non-Formulary (NF) and Prior Authorization (PA) medication adjudication program. This individual is required to exercise an advanced level of leadership, communication, organizational skill, independent judgment, and problem-solving ability.



Overview

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Accepting applications
Open & closing dates
02/23/2026 to 03/04/2026
This job will close when we have received 50 applications which may be sooner than the closing date. Learn more
Salary
$124,400 to - $193,838 per year

Salary to be determined based on location

Pay scale & grade
GS 11 - 12
Locations
1 vacancy in the following locations:
Fort Wayne, IN
Indianapolis, IN
Marion, IN
Ann Arbor, MI
Remote job
No
Telework eligible
No
Travel Required
50% or less - You may be expected to travel for this position.
Relocation expenses reimbursed
No
Appointment type
Permanent
Work schedule
Full-time
Service
Excepted
Promotion potential
12
Job family (Series)
Supervisory status
No
Security clearance
Not Required
Drug test
Yes
Position sensitivity and risk
Non-sensitive (NS)/Low Risk
Trust determination process
Financial disclosure
No
Bargaining unit status
No
Announcement number
CBSR-12892607-26-AW
Control number
858509600

This job is open to

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Clarification from the agency

First Area of Consideration- Permanent, federal employees of the Veterans Health Administration (VHA). Your SF-50 must be within the last two years to be considered. Second Area of Consideration- External to Veterans Health Administration (VHA). Additionally, the selected candidate must reside within VISN 10 and will report to a facility. NOTE: The 2-page Resume requirement does not apply to this position. For more information, refer to Required Documents below.

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Duties

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VA Careers - Pharmacy: https://youtube.com/embed/Fn_ickNBEws

Duties for the Non-Formulary (NF) Clinical Pharmacist include but are not limited to:

  • Reviews and adjudicates medication requests.
  • Conducts education with providers at the point of ordering medications with emphasis on providing the most clinically appropriate, safe, and cost-effective treatment to Veterans.
  • The incumbent will work collaboratively with the VISN Non-Formulary and VISN Clinical Pharmacy Program Managers and establish relationships with clinical and professional staff within VISN 10 (including community care providers) to continually review and implement the safe, cost-effective use of medications.
  • Collaborates with the VISN 10 NF Program Manager and the VISN 10 Clinical Pharmacy Program Manages to identify any drug shortages related to medication requests.
  • Collaborates with the VISN 10 NF Program Manager and the VISN 10 Clinical Pharmacy Program Manager to assist with the management of annual PBM cost savings initiatives, including manual and automated conversions as indicated.
  • Ensures that medication orders and prescriptions are accurately and efficiently entered.
  • Consults with VISN 10 providers, contracted care providers outside VA for contracted care, and community care providers to obtain information necessary to adjudicate medication requests.
  • Maintains awareness of and meets VA performance metrics outlined for adjudication of prior authorizations and monitoring parameters.
  • Promotes and advocates for compliance with the VA National Formulary (VANF) and VA criteria-for-use documents.
  • Maintains awareness of changes in the Pharmacy Benefits Management (PBM) Formulary services (e.g., formulary additions and deletions, relevant memoranda, and policies and procedures).
  • Maintains a good working knowledge of information resources, both written and electronic, as well as therapeutics and disease management areas covered by clinical pharmacy services.
  • Identifies outcomes that can be improved and assists with the performance improvement process.
  • Assures allergy assessments are completed prior to processing orders related to a medication request.
  • Serves as a subject matter expert to VISN 10 providers and administration for questions regarding national criteria for use, treatment algorithms and the VA National Formulary.
  • Forwards any provider appeals of a NF or PA drug request decision appropriately to the VISN 10 facility P&T Chair to ensure timely review and completion of the request.
  • Participates in the creation of operational and clinical resources for staff.
  • Completes and documents reviews in the Electronic Health Record (EHR) in a timely manner.
  • Provides support to Network and facility leadership related to EHR implementation and sustainment programs related to pharmacy as needed.
  • Completes all team workload evaluations by deadlines independently.
Work Schedule: Full Time- variable.
Telework: Ad-hoc availability, if approved
Virtual: This is not a virtual position.
Functional Statement #: 91746-A
Relocation/Recruitment Incentives: NOT Authorized. Moving expenses would be covered by employee.
Travel: Required: 50% or less - You may be expected to travel for this position.

Requirements

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Conditions of employment

  • You must be a U.S. Citizen to apply for this job.
  • All applicants tentatively selected for VA employment in a testing designated position are subject to urinalysis to screen for illegal drug use prior to appointment. Applicants who refuse to be tested will be denied employment with VA.
  • Selective Service Registration is required for males born after 12/31/1959.
  • Must be proficient in written and spoken English.
  • Subject to background/security investigation.
  • Selected applicants will be required to complete an online onboarding process. Acceptable form(s) of identification will be required to complete pre-employment requirements (https://www.uscis.gov/i-9-central/form-i-9-acceptable-documents). Effective May 7, 2025, driver's licenses or state-issued dentification cards that are not REAL ID compliant cannot be utilized as an acceptable form of identification for employment.
  • Must pass pre-employment physical examination.
  • Participation in the seasonal influenza vaccination program is a requirement for all Department of Veterans Affairs Health Care Personnel (HCP).
  • Complete all application requirements detailed in the "Required Documents" section of this announcement.
As a condition of employment for accepting this position, you will be required to serve a 1 or 2-year trial period during which we will evaluate your fitness and whether your continued employment advances the public interest. In determining if your employment advances the public interest, we may consider:
  • your performance and conduct;
  • the needs and interests of the agency;
  • whether your continued employment would advance organizational goals of the agency or the Government; and
  • whether your continued employment would advance the efficiency of the Federal service.
Upon completion of your trial period, your employment will be terminated unless you receive certification, in writing, that your continued employment advances the public interest.

Qualifications

Applicants pending the completion of educational or certification/licensure requirements may be referred and tentatively selected but may not be hired until all requirements are met.

Basic Requirements:

  • Citizenship: United States Citizenship: Non-citizens may only be appointed when it is not possible to recruit qualified citizens in accordance with VA Policy.
  • Education: Graduate of an Accreditation Council for Pharmacy Education (ACPE) accredited College or School of Pharmacy with a baccalaureate degree in pharmacy (BS Pharmacy) and/or a Doctor of Pharmacy (Pharm.D.) degree. Verification of approved degree programs may be obtained from the Accreditation Council for Pharmacy Education, 20 North Clark Street, Suite 2500, Chicago, Illinois 60602-5109; phone: (312) 664-3575, or through their Web site at: http://www.acpe-accredit.org/. (NOTE: Prior to 2005 ACPE accredited both baccalaureate and Doctor of Pharmacy terminal degree program. Today the sole degree is Doctor of Pharmacy.)
  • Licensure: Full, current and unrestricted license to practice pharmacy in a State, Territory, Commonwealth of the United States (i.e., Puerto Rico), or the District of Columbia. The pharmacist must maintain current registration if this is a requirement for maintaining full, current, and unrestricted licensure. A pharmacist who has, or has ever had, any license(s) revoked, suspended, denied, restricted, limited, or issued/placed in a probationary status may be appointed only in accordance with the provisions in VA Handbook 5005, Part II, Chapter 3, section B, paragraph 16.
May qualify based on being covered by the Grandfathering Provision as described in the VA Qualification Standard for this occupation (only applicable to current VHA employees who are in this occupation and meet the criteria).

Grade Determinations: In addition to the basic requirements for employment in paragraph 2, the following criteria must be met when determining the grade of candidates.
  • GS-11 Pharmacist-Experience, Education, and Licensure. None beyond the basic requirements. NOTE: See exception to licensure requirement in subparagraph above.
    • Assignment. Pharmacists at this grade level serve in a developmental capacity.
  • GS-12 Clinical Pharmacist (Full Performance Level)- In addition to the basic requirements, candidates must meet one of the following:
    • 1 year of experience equivalent to the next lower grade level, or
    • Completion of an ACPE-accredited Pharm.D. program.
    • Assignment. A pharmacist in this assignment handles routine medication-related activities in accordance with local, Veterans Integrated Service Network (VISN), and national policies and regulations. These include, but are not limited to: reviewing, interpreting, and verifying medication orders for appropriateness; processing and filling medication orders; interacting with and making recommendations to other clinical staff regarding medication therapy ordered to ensure safe and effective care; reviewing the patient's medications, allergies, labs, and other pertinent information from the medical record to identify and solve medication-related problems; contacting providers as appropriate; documenting recommendations and interventions; providing refill extensions and partial medication supplies; taking health and medication histories; performing medication reconciliation; providing drug information; assisting in formulary management including therapeutic substitutions, nonformulary reviews and medication usage evaluations; documenting and assessing adverse drug events (ADEs); assisting in medical emergencies; providing oversight of technical staff in all aspects of medication distribution. Pharmacists assigned to this position must demonstrate the following knowledge, skills and abilities (KSAs):
    1. Knowledge of professional pharmacy practice.
    2. Ability to communicate orally and in writing to both patients and health care staff.
    3. Knowledge of laws, regulations, and accreditation standards related to the distribution and control of scheduled and non-scheduled drugs and pharmacy security.
    4. Skill in monitoring and assessing the outcome of drug therapies, including physical assessment and interpretation of laboratory and other diagnostic parameters.

Preferred Experience:
  • VA Clinical Pharmacist Experience
  • Non-Formulary Review Experience

Reference: For more information on this qualification standard, please visit https://www.va.gov/ohrm/QualificationStandards/.

The full performance level of this vacancy is GS-12.

Physical Requirements: The work is administrative and technical in nature, primarily sedentary. Work is performed in an office setting and requires the use of numerous communication modalities. Some travel and tour of duty changes are required to meet demands of the position. Occasional light physical effort may be required.

Education

Note: Only education or degrees recognized by the U.S. Department of Education from accredited colleges, universities, schools, or institutions may be used to qualify for Federal employment. You can verify your education here: http://ope.ed.gov/accreditation/. If you are using foreign education to meet qualification requirements, you must send a Certificate of Foreign Equivalency with your transcript in order to receive credit for that education. For further information, visit: https://sites.ed.gov/international/recognition-of-foreign-qualifications/.

Additional information

Receiving Service Credit for Earning Annual (Vacation) Leave: Federal Employees earn annual leave at a rate (4, 6 or 8 hours per pay period) which is based on the number of years they have served as a Federal employee. Selected applicants may qualify for credit toward annual leave accrual, based on prior work experience or military service experience. This credited service can be used in determining the rate at which they earn annual leave. Such credit must be requested and approved prior to the appointment date and is not guaranteed.

During the application process you may have an option to opt-in to make your resume available to hiring managers in the agency who have similar positions. Opting in does not impact your application for this announcement, nor does it guarantee further consideration for additional positions.

This job opportunity announcement may be used to fill additional vacancies.

This position is in the Excepted Service and does not confer competitive status.

VA encourages persons with disabilities to apply. The health-related positions in VA are covered by Title 38, and are not covered by the Schedule A excepted appointment authority.

If you are unable to apply online or need an alternate method to submit documents, please reach out to the Agency Contact listed in this Job Opportunity Announcement.

Under the Fair Chance to Compete Act, the Department of Veterans Affairs prohibits requesting an applicant's criminal history prior to accepting a tentative job offer. For more information about the Act and the complaint process, visit Human Resources and Administration/Operations, Security, and Preparedness (HRA/OSP) at The Fair Chance Act.

Candidates should be committed to improving the efficiency of the Federal government, passionate about the ideals of our American republic, and committed to upholding the rule of law and the United States Constitution.

How you will be evaluated

You will be evaluated for this job based on how well you meet the qualifications above.

IN DESCRIBING YOUR EXPERIENCE, PLEASE BE CLEAR AND SPECIFIC. WE MAY NOT MAKE ASSUMPTIONS REGARDING YOUR EXPERIENCE. Your application, resume, C.V., and/or supporting documentation will be verified. Please follow all instructions carefully. Errors or omissions may affect consideration for employment.

Experience refers to paid and unpaid experience, including volunteer work done through National Service programs (e.g., Peace Corps, AmeriCorps) and other organizations (e.g., professional; philanthropic; religions; spiritual; community; student; social). Volunteer work helps build critical competencies, knowledge, and skills and can provide valuable training and experience that translates directly to paid employment. You will receive credit for all qualifying experience, including volunteer experience.

The Department of Veterans Affairs performs pre-employment reference checks as an assessment method used in the hiring process to verify information provided by a candidate (e.g., on resume or during interview or hiring process); gain additional knowledge regarding a candidate's abilities; and assist a hiring manager with making a final selection for a position.

It is the policy of the VA to not deny employment to those that have faced financial hardships or periods of unemployment.

Veterans and Transitioning Service Members: Please visit the VA for Vets site for career-search tools for Veterans seeking employment at VA, career development services for our existing Veterans, and coaching and reintegration support for military service members.

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