Pharmacist, Principal
Blue Shield of California
Long Beach, CA · Posted September 11, 2026
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Where Long Beach, CA ranks
Where Long Beach, CA placed in our monthly rankings, month by month. Each month stays online at its own address.
November 2026
- #2Best all-round cities for new graduates72 / 100 · of 100
- #2Best all-round cities for new graduates in the West Coast72 / 100 · of 39
- #3Cities that post pay most often53% · of 100
- #7Cities hosting the most business conferences in the West Coast8 conferences · of 17
- #8Best cities for manufacturing and industrial pay after cost of living$140k · of 35
- #11Cities with the most jobs that need no experience in the West Coast1.1% · of 66
Rankings about clinical jobs
- Best cities for clinical jobs #1 New York (202 openings)
- Employers with the most clinical jobs #1 Veterans Health Administration (215 roles)
How AI is used in this kind of work
AI use among pharmacists is little observed so far. Measured exposure for pharmacists: 9% (little observed).
Share of this job’s tasks that AI is already used for at work, from real usage. It is not a forecast of job loss, and a low number means no use seen yet. Source: Anthropic Economic Index.
Blue Shield of California has filed 8 layoff notices in the last twelve months, covering 60 workers, most recently August 2026. These are public filings with state labor departments, and an open role can sit alongside them. See the filings
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About the job
Your Role
The Cost of Health Care (COHC) & Specialty Drug Management Pharmacy team is responsible for managing the Specialty Drug strategies across the pharmacy and medical benefit and leading and implementing cost of health care initiatives. The Pharmacist, Principal will report to the Director, Pharmacy COHC & Specialty Drug Management. In this role you will be responsible for oversight of the specialty pharmacy networks, limited distribution drug access, specialty-at-retail initiatives, direct drug distribution partnerships, and specialty pharmacy programs to improve affordability, access, quality, and member experience.
Our leadership model is about developing great leaders at all levels and creating opportunities for our people to grow – personally, professionally, and financially. We are looking for leaders that are energized by creative and critical thinking, building and sustaining high-performing teams, getting results the right way, and fostering continuous learning.
Your Work In this role, you will:
Lead end-to-end specialty drug program strategy across pharmacy and medical benefit
Manage specialty pharmacy, LDD, specialty-at-retail, and direct contracted distribution networks
Monitor network performance, utilization, reimbursement, access, service levels, and financial outcomes
Develop and oversee specialty pharmacy programs such as short fill, biosimilar, site-of-care, and affordability initiatives
Partner with internal teams, vendors, manufacturers, and pharmacy networks to execute strategic initiatives
Use analytics to evaluate specialty drug trends, measure program effectiveness, and present recommendations to leadership
Your Knowledge and Experience
Requires a Doctor of Pharmacy (PharmD) degree from an accredited school of pharmacy in the U.S.
Requires a current, active, and unrestricted California Registered Pharmacist (RPh) license
Requires 4 years of experience in clinical pharmacy
Experience in specialty pharmacy, managed care pharmacy, pharmacy benefit design, specialty networks, LDD programs, and biosimilar strategies
Prior experience in evaluation of pharmacy program value and performance drivers
Prior management experience in health plans or pharmacy benefit management companies, with deep knowledge of pharmacy benefit, formulary and network products, program strategies and competitive landscape
Prior experience in vendor partnership, contract operations, negotiations, and performance management is preferred
Possesses strong business acumen with proven experience in pharmacy strategy development and planning
Strong knowledge of specialty drug reimbursement, contracting, distribution models, analytics, and vendor management
Excellent communication skills with prior experience in presentations to internal and external executive level business stakeholders
Demonstrated leadership, strategic planning, financial analysis, and cross-functional collaboration skills
Detail-oriented with the ability to work in a fast-paced environment
Exhibit "can do" attitude and solution-oriented approach to resolve challenges
Hybrid
This role requires employees to be in-office based on our hybrid workplace model, balancing purposeful in-person collaboration with flexibility. For most teams, this means coming into the office two days each week.
Employees living more than 50 miles from an office location will work with their manager to determine in-office time based on business need.