Richard Pezzillo
Executive Director, New England Hemophilia Association
Richard Pezzillo is the Executive Director of the New England Hemophilia Association (NEHA). Prior to joining NEHA, Richard worked in Washington, DC as the press secretary for Senator Sheldon Whitehouse, and then as the Communications and Marketing Director for the Hemophilia Federation of America (HFA). Richard is the former co-chair of the National Hemophilia Foundation’s (NHF) Youth Leadership Institute. He is the recipient of the Ryan White Meritorious Service Award, NHF Advocate of the Year Award, and a “40 under Forty” winner for the Association for Healthcare Philanthropy and Providence Business News. Richard graduated from Western Connecticut State University and currently resides in Providence, Rhode Island.
Richard currently is the chair of the Patients for Prescription Access Coalition (PFPA), which represents over 25 patient advocacy organizations, including Epilepsy Foundation of New England, Rare New England, Arthritis Foundation, Lupus and Allied Diseases Association, and National Alliance of Mental Illness Massachusetts among others. PFPA has advocated and led the efforts for the extension of the Massachusetts sunset provision to allow patients to reduce their copay costs for prescriptions using manufacturer discount assistance. In addition, PFPA led the efforts for the patient advocacy efforts for the co-pay accumulator ban legislation in CT, MA, and RI.
On June 2, 2021, Connecticut Governor Ned Lamont signed into law a bill to allow that payers or pharmacy benefit manager’s (PBM) give credit for any discount provided or payment made by a third party for, or any portion of, the out-of-pocket expense for the covered benefit. The bill’s requirement applies to all covered benefits and does not distinguish between drugs with or without generics or biosimilars. Connecticut’s bill applies to all health insurance policies issued, renewed, amended, or continued on or after January 1, 2022.
Founded in 1957, The New England Hemophilia Association (NEHA) is a non-profit organization dedicated to improving the quality of life of all persons with bleeding disorders and their families through education, support and advocacy in CT, MA, ME, NH, RI, VT.
