Q: Where did you grow up?
I grew up in Atlanta, Georgia. As a teenager, I was exposed to several healthcare professional settings, and I had the opportunity to tutor inner-city elementary school kids throughout high school. I learned the importance of public service with an eye towards specific community needs. My mom’s sorority, Sigma Gamma Rho, kept me active in Atlanta communities, ranging from regular work at food banks to helping out the sorority’s children’s shelter. Although I now consider myself a D.C. guy, I’ll never forget the respect for people and general style that Atlanta taught me.
Q: Where did you go to college/graduate school?
I completed an accelerated, 6-year, Doctor of Pharmacy program at Mercer (Mercer University in Macon – 2 years, and Mercer University, College of Pharmacy in Atlanta – 4 years). I attended Georgetown University Law Center where I obtained my J.D.
Q: What are your favorites?
Food: Sushi
Movie: Gladiator
Musicians: Outkast (of course); Jimi Hendrix; Incubus
Destination: (besides my bed and D.C.) London, England
Q: What do you like to do outside of work?
Exercise, spend time with my wife (typical, but important!), family, and friends. I’m somewhat of a foodie and have been on a mission to find D.C.’s best branzino, but I don’t know if that is a “hobby.”
Q: What kind of work does your company do in 340B and what makes it stand out?
I work at Powers, Pyles, Sutter & Verville PC (aka Powers Law Firm), which is a nationally renowned leader in health care, education, and tribal law. I work in the drug pricing and health care practice group. We represent public hospitals, private nonprofit hospitals, health centers, Ryan White clinics, and many other safety net health care providers and pharmacies. These organizations serve as the backbone of the nation’s public health system. I focus on the 340B program, transactions, and pharmacy law.
In the private practice of law, it is difficult to find true experts who understand the complexities and history of the 340B drug pricing program. It’s even harder to find professionals who appreciate how the program supports our nation’s public health infrastructure. I was lucky enough to find them at Powers. Our 340B Program practice is led by William von Oehsen, who assisted with drafting and designing the 340B statute, which has provided countless people with affordable care, medications, and other critical safety net services. He worked for over thirty years to support our country’s safety net providers and the underprivileged communities they serve. Besides our deep knowledge in health care law, Powers is unique given the firm’s strong history in government relations. The founding partner, Galen Powers, served in the Office of General Counsel, Department of Health, Education and Welfare in 1965. His government career was recognized in citations from both the Secretary and the President, and he was appointed the first Chief Counsel to the Health Care Financing Administration in 1977, which later became the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services.
Q: Why did you choose to work in the 340B space?
I dedicate my life to health care and representing 340B providers after experiencing, firsthand, the critical role that safety net hospitals play in under-resourced communities. Most people do not understand that these providers are the very heart of our country’s health system. I essentially grew up in those settings, having worked at Grady Memorial Hospital throughout high school. I worked each summer on the infectious diseases floor. I befriended people living with life threatening illnesses, including HIV, and saw how professionals at Grady cared for them with compassion.
Later, while attending Georgetown Law, I met a Powers attorney. We immediately identified our mutual interest in serving U.S. safety net hospitals and that my background as a pharmacist was ideal for practicing law under the 340B program. These experiences fueled my passion for 340B and drug pricing law.
Q: What do you feel is your most significant contribution to the 340B world or to a 340B customer/client?
One of my significant contributions was working on a federal litigation matter with Powers attorneys Bill von Oehsen, Barbara Williams, Ron Connelly, and Peggy Tighe, and obtaining a complete victory on behalf of Arkansas safety net providers and the communities they serve. The case was a seminal district court case, Pharm. Research & Manufacturers of America. v. McClain, 645 F. Supp. 3d 890 (E.D. Ark. 2022), which challenged Arkansas’s novel 340B distribution law on preemption grounds. Powers was successful at both the district and appellate courts in protecting Arkansas’s public health system.
Q: What advice do you have for a young professional who has recently launched a career in the 340B space?
I advise burgeoning 340B professionals to start by understanding the purpose of the program and the communities it serves. The primary role of 340B is to support safety net health care providers and our public health system. I believe that these providers, their patients, and their communities are the very heart of our country.
Next, I’d recommend attending 340B-related conferences to gain a basic understanding of the many parts of the program. Finally, be passionate about working in the program because it presents an opportunity to serve the country, which should not be taken for granted. In 340B, you can dedicate your life, through work, to something that matters, and this is why 340B professionals are no ordinary folks. Despite scrutiny from multinational for-profit drugmakers, at the end of the day, 340B helps underserved populations and that matters.
For questions, Mark can be reached at Mark.Ogunsusi@PowersLaw.com.
