This guest blog is one in a series by sponsors of the 2026 PQA Annual Meeting explore how integrating MTM Intelligence into the CMR workflow helps bridge the gap between trusted pharmacy relationships and industry-leading clinical expertise. PQA does not endorse, recommend or favor any product, service or organization that is a sponsor.
Local trust is still the engine of MTM
CMS’s CY 2027 Rate Announcement signals renewed accountability for CMR completion, with intent to bring the MTM Program Completion Rate (CMR completion) back into Star Ratings beginning with the 2029 Star Ratings (measurement year 2027). For plans and pharmacy organizations, the imperative is clear: improve CMR performance in a way patients will engage with and that starts by leaning into the most trusted access point in the community – the local pharmacy team.
Medication Therapy Management (MTM) is often discussed in terms of volume, how many CMRs were completed, and whether targets were met. Those metrics matter, but they can miss the real driver of performance: whether patients choose to engage.
Across markets, pharmacies, and populations, the most consistent predictor of engagement is simple. Patients are more likely to answer the phone, complete a CMR, and follow through when outreach comes from someone they already trust. That’s why Outcomes is bringing MTM Intelligence to our CMR workflow. MTM Intelligence bridges the gap between local patient relationships and industry leading MTM expertise by weaving pharmacy-focused clinical insights into the CMR journey, allowing pharmacies to focus less on documenting the service and more on caring for your patients.
At high-performing pharmacies, MTM success reflects a shift from a dispensing-first mindset to a clinical services mindset. At these pharmacies, value means measurable patient impact, stronger adherence, and better outcomes delivered through a trusted local team. The question is: how do we sustain buy-in, create capacity for more CMRs without sacrificing quality, and prepare for anticipated growth in 2027 volume?
MTM isn’t just a checklist, it’s a moment of truth. To be effective, patients must share what they’re really taking, what they’re struggling with, and what barriers they face. That level of candor is hard to earn with a script or an unfamiliar call center number.
- Responsiveness: Familiar outreach increases pickup rates and reduces skepticism about “another healthcare call.”
- Disclosure: Patients are more likely to mention side effects, cost concerns, and non-adherence when they feel known.
- Follow-through: Recommendations are more likely to stick when the relationship continues after the CMR (refills, follow-up conversations, and in-pharmacy touchpoints).
- Context: Local teams often know the practical realities like transportation, caregiver dynamics, language needs, and what has (or hasn’t) worked before.
Best practices: operational excellence is a people strategy
Trust with patients starts with trust inside the pharmacy. The strongest MTM performers build a repeatable operating rhythm that keeps pharmacists and technicians aligned on why MTM matters and how the work gets done.
- Make the value visible: Connect MTM to patient stories and outcomes, not just completion counts.
- Design for team-based delivery: Expand technician involvement where appropriate (scheduling, outreach support, documentation prep) so pharmacists can focus on clinical judgment and the patient conversation.
- Create clarity and consistency: Standardize when MTM work happens, how patients are queued, and what “done” looks like across the store.
- Coach to quality: Share what works, reinforce effective scripts and objection handling, and encourage specific examples that the team can replicate.
The scaling challenge: growth can crowd out the relationship
As MTM programs expand, and as CMR pressure increases, many networks run into the same paradox: the more important relationship-based care becomes, the less time teams have to deliver it. Prep, context-gathering, and documentation can push clinical work to the edges of the day, shrinking capacity for a human conversation built on trust.
Operating model choices matter. Some organizations deliver MTM primarily in-store; others pair stores with centralized support for outreach, scheduling, or documentation. There isn’t a single right model. The goal is the same – protect pharmacist time for high-trust clinical interactions while ensuring operational steps don’t become the bottleneck.
High performers create capacity through smart delegation, workflow discipline, and automation that reduces cognitive load.
When teams talk about “technology in MTM,” the concern is understandable. Will standardization dilute trust? The other question is whether technology can protect the time and focus required to build trust.
MTM Intelligence is designed to remove friction around the relationship by helping pharmacists enter the conversation prepared with the right context.
- Surface key context: Relevant history, medication details, and prior learnings—without extra hunting.
- Prioritize outreach: Focus first where effort is most likely to translate into engagement and impact.
- Reduce prep and documentation time: Streamline the work around the CMR so pharmacists can focus on listening and clinical judgment.
Preparing for 2027: building capacity without breaking quality
Looking ahead to anticipated 2027 CMR growth, the challenge isn’t simply “more volume.” If demand expands without changes to capacity, pressure shows up everywhere. This includes staffing, training, scheduling, and performance across other clinical programs.
Leaders can act now by strengthening team-based delivery, training for consistent quality, and implementing workflow support that scales. Increased CMR volume doesn’t come at the expense of the local relationship, or other programs running in parallel, when done well.
For pharmacy organizations and plans, the implication is straightforward: higher expectations will require solutions beyond than more phone calls. It will require capacity, prioritization, and workflow support, so pharmacists can complete more high-quality CMRs without sacrificing the patient trust and continuity that drive engagement in the first place.
The payoff for plans: engagement that’s repeatable and defensible
For payers, MTM performance risk often shows up as an engagement problem: eligible members don’t respond, CMRs don’t get completed, and the opportunity window closes. When local relationship-based care is supported with intelligence, engagement becomes more consistent across a network. Not because conversations are scripted, but because teams have the support to deliver quality every day.
The future of MTM won’t be won by choosing between people and technology. It will be won by using intelligence to give pharmacists back the time and clarity to do what they do best: build trust, uncover real barriers, and help patients use medications safely and effectively.
If you’re preparing for a higher-volume, higher-expectation MTM environment, the question is worth asking now: how are you scaling the relationship at the center of your program? MTM Intelligence is built for that. Helping networks deliver local trust with the operational support required to perform at scale.
If boosting CMR engagement is a priority, pressure-test your outreach model now: are local teams enabled to reach members, do they have the context to personalize conversations, and do workflows make it easy to complete and document CMRs at scale?