AscellaHealth advances AscellaOne technology strategy, names Asad Shoostry chief technology officer. BERWYN, Pa., Sept. 15, 2026 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) - AscellaHealth, a technology-first pharmacy management solutions provider, today announces the appointment of Asad Shoostry as chief technology officer, strengthening the company's investment in technology as a core part of how it serves clients, scales its business and creates value across the healthcare ecosystem. Asad will lead the technology strategy behind AscellaHealth's expanding digital platform portfolio, including AscellaOne(TM), digital GPO capabilities, enterprise data architecture and the technology foundation supporting its pharmacy, specialty and patient services businesses. "Healthcare does not need another disconnected point solution - we have plenty of those," says Asad. "What we need is a better way to connect pharmacy, medical and specialty data to the decisions that determine access, reimbursement and total cost. If we can make that information usable at the right point in the process, clients can act earlier, reduce friction and demonstrate real value to the member." His appointment comes as AscellaHealth moves toward a more connected platform model, bringing together data, workflow and services that have traditionally operated across separate systems. The strategy includes API-based integration, a governed healthcare data lake and Microsoft Fabric environment, shared analytics and a scalable architecture designed to support current services and future growth. "The AscellaOne modular architecture allows clients to adopt the capabilities they need without replacing their existing technology environments," explains Asad. "At the center of the AscellaOne strategy is a governed data architecture designed to bring information from multiple healthcare and operational sources into a common environment where it can be validated, connected and used for applications, analytics and AI. It brings together pharmacy network services, financial assistance, rebate management, patient support and other savings capabilities, while the broader platform will support additional services, including the company's growing GPO and network businesses. This data architecture and digital platforms are designed to give healthcare organizations greater control over cost, access and member outcomes." Dea Belazi, chief executive officer, AscellaHealth, says the creation of the CTO role reflects how closely the company's technology strategy is now tied to its business strategy: "As AscellaHealth grows, technology cannot simply support the business - it has to become part of how we create value for our clients," says Belazi. "Asad brings a combination of healthcare experience, technology architecture and business leadership that will help us build the foundation to scale while giving clients greater visibility, flexibility and control." Asad brings more than two decades of technology and leadership experience across healthcare and other complex industries, including leadership experience with CareFirst BlueCross BlueShield, Kaiser Permanente, Food & Drug Administration and the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services. He holds a bachelor's degree in Management Information Systems from the University of Toledo and is certified in PMP, TOGAF and ITIL. At AscellaHealth, his focus will span platform development, data strategy, architecture and delivery, with technology investments tied directly to business and client outcomes. Asad emphasizes, "A modern technology stack is not the outcome. The outcome is whether we can help a client see where cost is occurring, understand what is driving it and act sooner. It is whether we can reduce administrative waste, improve access to therapy and show, with data, the value we created." Asad sees particular opportunity in connecting information that has historically been viewed independently, including pharmacy and medical claims, specialty treatment data, eligibility, pricing, reimbursement and patient-support activity. "The paradigm changes when healthcare data stops being something we reconcile after the fact and becomes something we can use while decisions are still being made," he concludes. "That creates an opportunity to improve the member experience, reduce unnecessary costs and create measurable value for our clients." About AscellaHealth AscellaHealth is a healthcare and technology solutions company built to help pharmacy benefit payers reduce costs, strengthen efficiency and gain greater transparency and control over their pharmacy benefit spend. AscellaHealth combines deep industry expertise in specialty and medical benefit specialty management with integrated technology solutions, including AscellaOne, a first-of-its-kind pharmacy benefits enablement platform. Guided by its member-centric mission to bring clarity to complexity, value to care and ongoing support to every step of the individual's healthcare journey, AscellaHealth gives payers greater flexibility to design, manage and optimize pharmacy benefits on their own terms. Visit www.ascellahealth.com/payer-solutions About AscellaOne AscellaOne(TM) by AscellaHealth is a technology-enabled pharmacy benefits platform designed to modernize how health plans, pharmacy benefit managers (PBMs), and third-party administrators (TPAs) manage and optimize pharmacy benefits and services - while keeping the patient at the center of every decision. AscellaOne(TM) delivers a modular, interoperable ecosystem that unifies specialty pharmacy management, financial optimization and real-time data analytics into a single enterprise-level solution. The platform gives regional and community health plans access to the economics, transparency and clinical oversight traditionally reserved for large, vertically integrated PBMs - without the complexity or conflicts of legacy models. With aggregated purchasing power and access to 100% of specialty and retail pharmacy products, AscellaOne(TM) helps payer organizations reduce costs, strengthen clinical oversight and improve access and outcomes for their members. Media: Esther Jin CPR Strategic Marketing Communications [email protected] 201.645.4896 x 10

AscellaHealth has appointed Johanna van Nijkerk as vice president of business development. Van Nijkerk brings over 20 years of healthcare benefits experience and will support the expansion of AscellaOne, a pharmacy benefits platform for employers, health plans, and pharmacy benefit managers. Van Nijkerk joins from SlateRx, where she served as AVP of business development. She previously spent nearly two decades with Cigna Healthcare and Express Scripts in roles of increasing responsibility, managing a portfolio of large employer clients representing more than 2.5 million annual claims whilst maintaining 100% client retention. AscellaHealth is a pharmacy solutions provider specialising in serving patients with complex, chronic conditions. The company delivers end-to-end solutions to life sciences and healthcare companies.

AscellaHealth appoints industry veteran Johanna van Nijkerk as Vice President of Business Development to advance National Accounts and drive growth of AscellaOne. BERWYN, Pa., July 28, 2026 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) - AscellaHealth, a full-spectrum pharmacy solutions provider rooted in specialty pharmacy expertise, today announces the appointment of Johanna van Nijkerk as vice president of business development. Van Nijkerk brings more than 20 years of experience in the healthcare benefits space and will support the continued expansion of AscellaOne, a modern pharmacy benefits enablement platform for employers, health plans and PBMs looking for a modular way to deliver affordable and accessible pharmacy benefits to their members. "Johanna's reputation in this industry speaks for itself," says Dea Belazi, chief executive officer, AscellaHealth. "She has spent her career building long-standing, trusted relationships with key industry stakeholders, making her an ideal fit as we continue to expand the reach and power of AscellaOne. Her deep national accounts expertise and consultative approach are exactly what our clients and prospects need as they navigate a changing regulatory environment and a push to more open, unbundled and transparent options." Van Nijkerk joins AscellaHealth from SlateRx, where she served as AVP, Business Development, and was instrumental in building and expanding strategic channel partnerships with leading national brokerage organizations as well as CoreTrust, the company's Group Purchasing Organization (GPO) partner. Prior to SlateRx, she spent nearly two decades with Cigna Healthcare and Express Scripts, serving in roles of increasing responsibility, including Vice President of Sales, Strategy & Business Development for National Accounts, Senior Account Executive, and Coalition Lead. Throughout her tenure, she managed a portfolio of large and complex employer clients representing more than 2.5 million annual claims while maintaining an outstanding 100% client retention rate. Throughout her career, van Nijkerk has been recognized for her consultative leadership style and ability to translate complex solutions into clear strategies that help organizations address business challenges and drive meaningful outcomes. She has also been active in industry leadership, serving on the Dallas American Heart Association's Executive Leadership Team and as a Steering Committee member for Worldwide Employee Benefits' Dallas chapter. Van Nijkerk holds an International Business degree from Hanze University of Applied Sciences in the Netherlands and is multi-lingual, speaking Dutch, English, German and Spanish. "I'm excited to join AscellaHealth at such a pivotal moment of growth and expansion," says van Nijkerk. "Decades in this industry have taught me that behind every contract is a plan sponsor or payer trying to do right by their members, sometimes with poor visibility or one high-cost specialty claim standing between them and keeping the lights on. As more personalized, individualized therapies become the norm, financial and operational models need to evolve with them. AscellaHealth has a track record combining expertise, customization and innovation to improve access and affordability, even in the most complex categories of medication. That's a rare and meaningful starting point for AscellaOne as it brings pharmacy payers and vendor partners together within its modular ecosystem." Johanna van Nijkerk will be attending RosettaFest 2026 in Nashville, TN this week where she looks forward to connecting with plan sponsors, payers and industry partners to discuss AscellaOne and the future of pharmacy benefits. About AscellaHealth LLC AscellaHealth is a global partner that delivers proven end-to-end solutions to both life sciences and healthcare companies to enhance the quality of life for patients with complex, chronic conditions. A dedicated team gets critical healthcare products from manufacturers to patients, while ensuring an efficient flow of funds between payers and pharma. For more information on our services and solutions, visit www.AscellaHealth.com. Media: Esther Jin CPR Strategic Marketing Communications [email protected] 201.645.4896 x 10