Duties
- Provide technical assistance as a professional pharmacist to interpret, monitor, or evaluate program guidance about CMS programs (e.g., Medicare Part B, Medicare Part D, or Medicaid).
- Develop program policy and operational guidance, including operations manuals, regulation text and preambles, briefing materials and talking points, change requests, correspondence, legislative proposals, and technical direction letters.
- Review and analyze drug policy issues such as cost-effectiveness, cost minimization, overall drug therapy costs, and budget forecasting.
- Respond to highly technical inquiries on various aspects of law, regulations, policies, etc., from Congresspersons, professional organizations, and the general public.
- Perform drug policy analysis and conducting research on pharmaceutical industry pricing trends in order to give authoritative advice on drug benefit designs.
Requirements
Conditions of Employment
- Incumbent must be licensed to practice pharmacy in a State, the District of Columbia, the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico, or a territory of the United States.
- You must be a U.S. Citizen or National to apply for this position.
- You will be subject to a background and suitability investigation.
- This is a remote position; however, the position reports to a CMS Office on a periodic basis. Requirements to report to the office will vary and can be discussed at the time of interview.
Qualifications
ALL QUALIFICATION REQUIREMENTS MUST BE MET BY THE CLOSING DATE OF THIS ANNOUNCEMENT.
Your resume must include detailed information as it relates to the experience required for this position. Evidence of copying and pasting directly from the vacancy announcement without clearly documenting supplemental information to describe your experience will result in an ineligible rating. This will prevent you from receiving further consideration.
BASIC REQUIREMENTS: The following lists the basic requirements for the position of Pharmacist. Current federal employees assigned to positions in this occupational series, GS-0660 as of September 2017 or before will be considered to have met the basic requirements for the position occupied. However, they must meet all other requirements for this position as listed below.
1. Education: A doctoral degree in Pharmacy that is recognized by the Accreditation Council for Pharmacy Education (external link) (ACPE) or an accrediting body recognized by the U.S. Department of Education (external link) at the time the degree was obtained.
2. Licensure: Applicants must be licensed to practice pharmacy in a State, the District of Columbia, the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico, or a territory of the United States.
Proof of license/registration MUST be submitted at time of application. Failure to submit proof of license/registration at the time of application
WILL result in an ineligible rating. Please see the "Required Documents" section below for more information.
3. Medical Requirement: You must be able to distinguish basic colors.
4. Experience: In addition to the licensure and requirements, listed above, you must demonstrate in your resume a
minimum of one year of professional pharmacy experience equivalent to at least the GS-12 grade level. Applicant's qualifications and background must demonstrate the knowledge, skills, abilities, and competencies necessary to perform the work of the position. Pharmacy work requires knowledge of the use, clinical effects, and composition of medications, including their chemical, biological, and physical properties. Qualifying professional pharmacy experience may involve, but is not limited to:
- Dispensing medications prescribed by physicians and other health practitioners and providing information to health practitioners and patients about proper usage of medications and side effects;
- Performing drug policy analysis and conducting research on pharmaceutical industry pricing trends in order to give authoritative advice on issues such as updating Medicare drug benefit designs, cost-effectiveness, cost minimization, overall drug therapy costs, and budget forecasting.
- Leading work on interpreting and analyzing pharmacy administrative claims and plan-reported data concerning drug coverage, pharmacy services, and drug utilization patterns.
- Evaluating medication use patterns and outcomes for patients in hospitals or managed care organizations;
- Performing administrative, consultative, or staff advisory work for a medical facility's pharmacy program;
- Planning, monitoring, and evaluating medication programs or regimens;
- Establishing medication-handling procedures for the storage and preservation of medications;
- Researching medical literature and/or clinical medication information to provide accurate responses to inquiries; and/or
- Maintaining all medication records required by law.
Experience refers to paid and unpaid experience, including volunteer work done through National Service programs (e.g., Peace Corps, AmeriCorps) and other organizations (e.g., professional; philanthropic; religious; spiritual; community, student, social). Volunteer work helps build critical competencies, knowledge, and skills and can provide valuable training and experience that translates directly to paid employment. You will receive credit for all qualifying experience, including volunteer experience.
Education
Education Requirement: You must have the following educational requirements: A doctoral degree in Pharmacy that is recognized by the Accreditation Council for Pharmacy Education (ACPE) or an accrediting body recognized by the U.S. Department of Education at the time the degree was obtained.
You are strongly encouraged to submit a copy of your transcripts at the time of application. Unofficial transcripts will be accepted at the time of application. Official transcripts will be required from all selectees prior to receiving an official offer.
Click the following link to view the occupational questionnaire:
Additional information
Bargaining Unit Position: Yes - American Federation of Government Employees, Local 1923
Tour of Duty: Flexible
Recruitment/Relocation Incentive: Not Authorized
Financial Disclosure: May be required, based on the duties of the position.
This position will be in direct support of the Inflation Reduction Act of 2022. This Act increases healthcare spending by nearly $100 billion, mainly by extending the American Rescue Plan's temporarily-expanded Affordable Care Act (ACA) premium tax credits for an additional three years, through 2025. The bill will also allow Medicare to negotiate prescription drug prices, implement improvements to Medicare Part D including a benefit redesign and new manufacturer discount program, impose inflation rebates for Part B and Part D drugs, and other miscellaneous changes in Part B and Part D to improve the affordability of prescription drugs.
To ensure compliance with an applicable preliminary nationwide injunction, which may be supplemented, modified, or vacated, depending on the course of ongoing litigation, the Federal Government will take no action to implement or enforce Executive Order 14043 Requiring Coronavirus Disease 2019 Vaccination for Federal Employees. Therefore, to the extent a federal job announcement includes the requirement to be fully vaccinated against COVID-19 pursuant to Executive Order 14043, that requirement does not currently apply. Positions with vaccination requirements under authority(ies) separate and distinct from Executive Order 14043 will be clearly identified. HHS may continue to require documentation of proof of vaccination to ensure compliance with those policies. Health and safety protocols remain in effect, in accordance with CDC guidance and the Safer Federal Workforce Task force. Consistent with current guidance, workplace safety protocols will no longer vary based on vaccination status or otherwise depend on the availability of vaccination information. Therefore, to the extent a job announcement states that HHS may request information regarding the vaccination status of selected applicants for the purposes of implementing workplace safety protocols, this statement does not currently apply.
Remote-Out Positions at CMS: This is a remote position; however, the position reports to a CMS Office on a periodic basis (e.g. 1-2 times per year). Requirements to report to the office will vary and can be discussed at the time of interview. As such, your pay will be based on your home address. For more information on locality and pay scales, please . Your worksite must be within the United States and you must adhere to all regulations and policies regarding remote work at CMS and in the federal government, including the signing of a remote work agreement.
The Interagency Career Transition Assistance Plan (ICTAP) and Career Transition Assistance Plan (CTAP) provide eligible displaced federal employees with selection priority over other candidates for competitive service vacancies. To be qualified you must submit the required documentation and be rated well-qualified for this vacancy. . A well-qualified applicant is one whose knowledge, skills and abilities clearly exceed the minimum qualification requirements of the position. Additional information about ICTAP and CTAP eligibility is on OPM's Career Transition Resources website at .
A career with the U.S. government provides employees with a comprehensive benefits package. As a federal employee, you and your family will have access to a range of benefits that are designed to make your federal career very rewarding. .
Eligibility for benefits depends on the type of position you hold and whether your position is full-time, part-time or intermittent. Contact the hiring agency for more information on the specific benefits offered.
Required Documents
The following documents are REQUIRED:
1. Resume showing relevant experience; cover letter optional. Your resume must indicate your citizenship and if you are registered for Selective Service if you are a male born after 12/31/59. Your resume must also list your work experience and education (if applicable) including the start and end dates (mm/yyyy) of each employment along with the number of hours worked per week. For work in the Federal service, you must include the series and grade level for the position(s). Your resume will be used to validate your responses to the assessment tool(s). For resume and application tips visit:
2. CMS Required Documents (e.g., SF-50, DD-214, SF-15, etc.). Required documents may be necessary to be considered for this vacancy announcement. . Failure to provide the required documentation WILL result in an ineligible rating OR non-consideration.
3. College Transcripts. Since this position requires specific education, you must submit a transcript attesting to your possession of the required education. You may submit an unofficial transcript or a list of college courses completed indicating course titles, credit hours, and grades received. An official transcript is required if you are selected for the position. If selected, you must provide an original document before the final job offer may be extended. If you do not submit a transcript indicating your possession of the required education, you will not be considered for this position.
College Transcripts and Foreign Education: Applicants who have completed part or all of their education outside of the U.S. must have their foreign education evaluated by an accredited organization to ensure that the foreign education is comparable to education received in accredited educational institutions in the U.S. For a listing of services that can perform this evaluation, visit the website. This list, which may not be all inclusive, is for informational purposes only and does not imply any endorsement of any specific agency.
If you are applying for a position for which a state license is issued (e.g., physician, engineer, attorney) possession of a valid and current U.S. professional license by a graduate of a foreign professional school or program is sufficient proof that the foreign education has been determined to be equivalent to the requisite U.S. professional education in that occupational field.
PLEASE NOTE: A complete application package includes the online application, resume, transcripts and CMS required documents. Please carefully review the full job announcement to include the "Required Documents" and "How to Apply" sections. Failure to submit the online application, resume, transcripts and CMS required documents, will result in you not being considered for employment.
Additional Forms REQUIRED Prior to Appointment:
If you are unable to apply online or need to fax a document you do not have in electronic form, view the following link for information regarding an .
If you are relying on your education to meet qualification requirements:
Education must be accredited by an accrediting institution recognized by the U.S. Department of Education in order for it to be credited towards qualifications. Therefore, provide only the attendance and/or degrees from . Failure to provide all of the required information as stated in this vacancy announcement may result in an ineligible rating or may affect the overall rating.
How to Apply
Your complete application package, as described in the "Required Documents" section, must be received by 11:59 PM ET on 10/04/2023 to receive consideration.
IN DESCRIBING YOUR WORK EXPERIENCE AND/OR EDUCATION, PLEASE BE CLEAR AND SPECIFIC REGARDING YOUR EXPERIENCE OR EDUCATION.
We strongly encourage applicants to utilize the USAJOBS resume builder in the creation of resumes. Please ensure EACH work history includes ALL of the following information:
- Official Position Title (include series and grade if Federal job)
- Duties (be specific in describing your duties)
- Employer's name and address
- Supervisor name and phone number
- Start and end dates including month and year (e.g. June 2007 to April 2008)
- Full-time or part-time status (include hours worked per week)
- Salary
Determining length of general or specialized experience is dependent on the above information and failure to provide ALL of this information WILL result in a finding of ineligible.
- To begin, click Apply to access the online application. You will need to be logged into your USAJOBS account to apply. If you do not have a USAJOBS account, you will need to create one before beginning the application.
- Follow the prompts to select your resume and/or other supporting documents to be included with your application package. You will have the opportunity to upload additional documents to include in your application before it is submitted. Your uploaded documents may take several hours to clear the virus scan process.
- After acknowledging you have reviewed your application package, complete the Include Personal Information section as you deem appropriate and click to continue with the application process.
- You will be taken to the online application which you must complete in order to apply for the position. Complete the online application, verify the required documentation is included with your application package, and submit the application.
To verify the status of your application, log into your USAJOBS account (), all of your applications will appear on the Welcome screen. The Application Status will appear along with the date your application was last updated. For information on what each Application Status means, visit: .
This agency provides reasonable accommodation to applicants with disabilities. If you need a reasonable accommodation for any part of the application or hiring process, please send an email to hrinquiries@cms.hhs.gov. The decision to grant reasonable accommodation will be made on a case-by-case basis.
Commissioned Corps Officers (including Commissioned Corps professionally boarded applicants) who are interested in applying for this position must send their cover letter and professional resume (not PHS Curriculum Vitae) to in lieu of applying through this announcement. The resume should specifically explain how you are qualified for this position and draw specific attention to your skills and experiences that demonstrates these qualifications. Also send any transcripts, licenses or certifications as requested in this announcement.
Please send all documents in 1 PDF file. In the subject line of your e-mail include only the Job Announcement Number. In the body of your e-mail include your current rank name and serial number. Failure to provide this information may impact your consideration for this position.
Additional selections may be made for similar positions across the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) within the local commuting area(s) of the location identified in this announcement. By applying, you agree to have your application shared with interested selecting official(s) at HHS. Clearance of CTAP/ICTAP will be applied for similar positions across HHS.
Agency contact information
CMS HR Inquiries
Email
Address
Center for Medicare
7500 Security Blvd
Woodlawn, MD 21244
US
Next steps
Once your online application is submitted, you will receive a confirmation notification by email. Within 30 business days of the closing date, 10/04/2023, you may check your status online by logging into your USAJOBS account (). We will update your status after each key stage in the application process has been completed.
Fair & Transparent
The Federal hiring process is set up to be fair and transparent. Please read the following guidance.
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