Ben link

PRESIDENT, TREASURER

Ben has wanted to be a pharmacist since he was in 7th grade. Over the course of his 15+ year career in pharmacy, Ben has experienced the practice from the point of view of a patient, pharmacy technician, intern, pharmacist, assistant pharmacy manager, clinical pharmacist, and clinical account manager.

While employed within pharmacy benefit managers (PBMs) Ben recognized a need for change within the pharmacy supply chain. Ben joined 3 Axis Advisors in 2019 to connect pharmacy claims data to people equally committed to getting the healthcare transaction right. At the same time, Ben began volunteering his time to 46brooklyn to provide clinical and analytical support to advance 46brooklyn’s mission. As the second President at 46brooklyn, Ben is committed to expanding drug pricing information and analytics at 46brooklyn.

Ben has worked with small and mid-sized employer groups, professional organizations, Medicaid programs, workers’ compensation insurers and re-insurers, and Third-Party Administrators (TPAs) to understand their drug pricing and claims data. He brings his experience working with those clients to help educate a broader and more diverse audience at 46brooklyn.

Ben received his degree as a Doctor of Pharmacy from Ohio Northern University with a minor in Spanish Language.

ANTONIO CIACCIA

CEO, SECRETARY

Born and raised in the world of pharmacy, Antonio Ciaccia has been crawling around pharmacies his entire life. After three years as a pharmacy technician and two years of pre-pharmacy curriculum, Antonio diverted course, graduating from The Ohio State University in 2007 with dual degrees in communications and political science before moving into the world of association management, eventually heading up government affairs for the Ohio Pharmacists Association, where his data analytics work with Eric Pachman and local journalists helped state officials to audit and uncover $244 million in hidden prescription drug overcharges in the state Medicaid managed care program.

After years of studying the pharmacy marketplace, Antonio became increasingly perplexed and concerned as he saw drug costs spiking while payouts to pharmacies were declining and more drugs were being excluded from plan coverage. Knowing something was being lost somewhere in the middle of an ever-growing transaction, Antonio has spent years working to crack the drug pricing code and pull the rug out from what he believes is one of the most dysfunctional marketplaces in the world.

In 2018, Antonio and Eric co-founded 46brooklyn to build on their work in Ohio and improve the transparency and accessibility of drug pricing data for the American public. Today, he also serves as the President of 3 Axis Advisors, a consulting firm that works with Medicaid Fraud Control Units, provider groups, research firms, technology companies, law firms, investment analysts, employers, government agencies, benefit consultants, and private foundations to diagnose and eliminate inefficiencies and inappropriate incentives in the prescription drug supply chain.

SCOTT McGohan

DIRECTOR

Scott McGohan is the CEO of McGohan Brabender, which is one of the largest independent health insurance brokers in Ohio. He works on vision casting, strategy alignment and leadership deployment. He has been with MB since 1988. As a business leader, it is always about people for Scott – always has been and always will be. Scott believes that understanding your core is the essence of transformation.

That includes being vulnerable about both your strengths and weaknesses. He believes people need to see leaders make mistakes, own them when they do, and teach people through success and failure. Scott believes you cannot threaten, coerce or reward people to care. You can only awaken the desire inside of them and give them the permission and encouragement to do so. Products are delivered by people, and when people believe in themselves they will believe in you.

JEFFREY BARTONE

DIRECTOR

Jeff Bartone, R.Ph. has over 15 years of experience in the pharmacy industry. Currently, he serves as President of Hock’s Pharmacy Inc, overseeing four locations and 50+ employees. Hock’s is a family-owned pharmacy and has been part of the Vandalia, Ohio community since 1948, focusing on increasing patient care using clinical teams, free delivery, and great customer service.

Jeff was the second youngest president of the Ohio Pharmacists Association in 139 years and served on a national independent advisory board to McKesson Pharmaceuticals from 2015 to 2018. He is still very active in the pharmacy profession, and beyond his involvement in the world of medicine, Jeff focuses on raising his 4 young kids with his wife.

MICHAEL SHARP

DIRECTOR

Michael Sharp, R.Ph. is currently President of SharpRx Pharmaceutical Consultation Services. In this capacity, he has consulted with several clients, including Myers and Stauffer, the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS), multiple state Medicaid programs, several research and consulting bureaus, SVC Inc, the Indiana Hemophilia and Thrombosis Center, pharmaceutical manufacturers, and the Indiana Attorney General's Office Medicaid Fraud Control Unit.

Mike has played a significant role in the CMS National Average Drug Acquisition Cost (NADAC) project and is a drug pricing and PBM expert. He has been heavily involved in leading the design, development, implementation, maintenance, management and stakeholder communications since the inception of the NADAC initiative from 2011 through 2023.  This resulted in NADAC adoption by 45 state Medicaid programs and several commercial PBMs. Mike was formerly the Director of Pharmacy for the State of Indiana Medicaid pharmacy program. Mike represented Region V states on the CMS Pharmacy Technical Advisory Group. Mike has significant experience in Medicaid pharmacy benefit management and has developed multiple innovative solutions for addressing program needs within the Medicaid pharmacy space. He has been licensed as a pharmacist in the State of Indiana since 1993.  Mike can be reached at Mike@sharprx.net.