Leadership — it’s in our DNA

The award-winning founding partners not only have deep experience in market access and patient services, but also carry extensive backgrounds in marketing, sales and creative development. Team members have direct experience across industries and all have walked in your shoes as management at top biotechs, pharmas, and medical device manufacturers.

Marina Allen

Co-Founder/Managing Partner

Marina Allen

Marina Allen boasts over two decades of expertise in patient access and reimbursement within the biopharmaceutical sector. Her career began in healthcare, where she held various roles such as certified EMT, medical assistant, surgical assistant, and office practice manager, laying a solid foundation before transitioning into biopharma. Acknowledged as a trailblazer in digital patient access, Marina collaborates with diverse service providers to tailor patient access platforms for manufacturers. With a strong background in patient access and a talent for assembling effective field reimbursement management teams, Marina offers comprehensive guidance to manufacturers.

Marina’s expertise extends across both the medical and pharmacy benefit markets, emphasizing growth in diverse medical specialties, with a particular focus on oncology and biosimilars. During her seventeen-year tenure at Allergan, Marina held multiple positions with a focus on access and reimbursement, culminating in her role as head of patient services for Botox Therapeutic. Additionally, she served as the commercial head for patient access and reimbursement at Coherus Biosciences, overseeing market access marketing, patient services, national field reimbursement, and reimbursement training.

For the past three years, Marina has provided consultancy services to biopharmaceutical companies, leveraging her extensive experience to strategize and develop top-tier patient support programs and field support teams. Most recently, she held the position of senior vice president at a market access agency, spearheading the establishment of a new patient services division and offering innovative solutions to clients by designing, building, and implementing PSP programs, along with developing cutting-edge patient services websites and comprehensive access marketing strategies.

Marina graduated with honors from UC Santa Barbara, earning a BS in Physiology.

Melanie Mays

Co-Founder/Managing Partner

Melanie Mays

Melanie Mays has more than 25 years of experience in the biopharmaceutical and medical device industries.  

She began her pharmaceutical career at Amgen, working on marketing operations programs with a heavy focus on regulatory messaging and medical communications across seven brands including Aranesp and Neulasta. She then moved on to Kaiser and focused on provider, payor, and localization programs in support of the initial Thrive campaign. After 13 more years in medical devices, Melanie began consulting in 2018. Her focus has been on market access strategy for large clients such as Novartis. 

Melanie won two GPO Innovation Awards for strategic reimbursement technologies and held several commercialization positions of increasing importance at Abbott (formerly St. Jude Medical), including launching over 30 products, from diagnostic tools to implantable cardiac devices. 

Melanie has launched over 40 products. 

Most recently, she held the position of senior vice president at a market access agency, leading market access AOR projects providing Managed Markets Marketing, Reimbursement, Value & Access and Health Economics specifically within the specialty product in oncology/hematology, inflammation, neurology and rare disease. Melanie is also adept at creating ecosystem work streams and patient journey development. Prior to her work in the healthcare industry, Melanie was a graphic designer and web developer. She is a graduate level professor, teaching marketing foundations, brand strategy, and market research. 

Melanie graduated cum laude from Mount Saint Mary’s University, where she received her B.S. in business administration and minored in marketing. She earned her M.B.A. from the Marshall School of Business at the University of Southern California.

Connie Lim

Market Access Marketing

Connie Lim

Connie Lim brings over 15 years of diverse experience across market access, brand marketing, operations, manufacturing, and project management in the biopharmaceutical, medical devices, and diagnostics industries. 

Beginning her career at Genentech, Connie initially focused on manufacturing and operations before transitioning to HCP & brand marketing. There, she established a pharmacist speaker bureau covering the oncology portfolio, including Herceptin, Rituxan, and Avastin. Subsequently, Connie held pivotal roles in two startups, concentrating on market access strategy, payer marketing, patient services, and reimbursement. Notably, she spearheaded cross-portfolio marketing initiatives that amplified awareness and engagement with patient support programs. 

In her most recent position at Cue Health, Connie served as the Director of Payer Marketing. Here, she devised market access strategies and secured preliminary HCPCS code approval for their products to attain coverage with national and regional payers. 

Connie is a graduate of UC Berkeley, where she earned her B.S. in chemical engineering and her MBA. Additionally, she holds a Graduate Certificate in Project Management & Management Science & Engineering from Stanford University.

Francie Nordin

Provider & Patient Advocacy

Francie Nordin

Francie Nordin is a seasoned expert in Revenue Cycle Management, FRM development, Market Access advising, and Patient Advocacy consulting. 

Francie’s career began in 2009 at a multifaceted oncology clinic, where she led the Patient Advocate team and coordinated the autologous stem cell transplant program. She secured expedited Medicaid approvals, preventing treatment delays. 

She later managed an outpatient hospital Patient Service Department in Lewiston, Idaho, developing best practices and training staff. In Spokane, Francie uncovered $1.5 million in denied claims due to third-party billing errors, transitioned billing in-house, and implemented practices that significantly reduced reimbursement times. 

Francie has consulted pharmaceutical organizations, building non-clinical speakers, market access, and FRM teams. In 2022, she became a Field Reimbursement Manager, developing state-specific payer reports and training other FRMs. Promoted to Lead Field Reimbursement Manager, she managed national accounts and large organization relationships. In addition, she has consulted as a revenue cycle manager of a large, critical access, 340B hospital oncology department, dedicated to improving patient care, empowering providers, and fostering pharma partnerships.

Paul Voss

Market Access Strategy

Paul Voss

Paul has over 25 years of specialty medical and pharmacy benefit drug and medical device industry experience, with emphasis on orphan and rare disease conditions, where he works to reduce physician and patient barriers to access. He is an established biopharmaceutical, market access, channel strategy, reimbursement, and patient – caregiver services department leader, with extensive Commercial product launch experience.

Paul has a proven track record in establishing global access strategy that considers pricing and reimbursement, Payer/PBM contracting, and public and healthcare policy – advocacy initiatives.

Paul has built and deployed multiple sales, access, provider/patient reimbursement services teams, and his focus includes Commercial readiness, tactical Access and Policy execution, and delivery on a pricing, reimbursement, and Global economic value propositions for payer, HTA, and organized system customers.

His key therapeutic experience: Orphan and Rare/Ultra-Rare Disease, CNS/Neurological (Mitochondrial, Amyloidosis, Epilepsy, Movement Disorders and Migraine), Cardiometabolic/Cardiovascular, Ophthalmology/Retinal, Urology, and Endocrinology.

Elissa Curtis

Marketing & Creative

Elissa Curtis

Elissa Curtis is a seasoned Creative Director renowned for her leadership in guiding companies through innovative branding and market strategies. With a dedicated focus on refining global brand identity and strategy, she has successfully led transformative rebranding initiatives within the pharmaceutical and specialty pharma sectors, positioning these organizations as industry leaders. Embracing a tech-forward approach, Elissa collaborates closely with executive leadership and stakeholders to ensure a consistent and compelling brand voice and visual identity across all platforms.

Her expertise in market access and reimbursement design has resulted in effective strategies that support pharmaceutical clients, payers, healthcare providers, and patients alike. Elissa leads national and global teams in developing creative solutions that enhance patient outcomes and foster strong partner relationships.

With a robust background in design and innovation, Elissa excels in developing comprehensive marketing strategies, enhancing brand visibility, and coordinating cross-functional teams. She is adept at optimizing digital marketing campaigns, implementing client engagement strategies, and providing mentorship to creative teams. Known for her ability to streamline project workflows and processes, Elissa Curtis continually drives creative excellence and strategic growth in every endeavor. Elissa graduated from Pratt Institute with an MFA and has served as an adjunct professor teaching communication and website design. Outside of her professional pursuits, she is an avid equestrian who values a balanced lifestyle.

Renelle Kelmar

Marketing Operations, Veeva Expert

Renelle Kelmar

Renelle Kelmar brings over 20 years of experience in a variety of marketing roles in the healthcare industry. Her expertise spans product and corporate marketing, marketing operations, branding, public relations, advertising, and social media. She boasts excellent project management skills and has worked on launching a multitude of products in a variety of therapeutic areas.

Renelle began her work in the pharmaceutical industry with10 years at Gilead Sciences, where she helped launch drugs for Hepatitis, PAH, Ischemic Heart Disease, and Cystic Fibrosis. During her time at Gilead, Renelle earned her MBA and transitioned from event planning and operations into strategic marketing, overseeing advertising, sponsorships, and product promotion.

After she left Gilead, Renelle found her niche in pre-commercial pharma, where she led efforts in disease-state education, product branding, corporate communications, and materials creation. She also instituted and managed promotional review processes, as companies readied themselves for launch. With her extensive marketing background, she effectively promoted and established credibility for new products from lesser known companies, and was a key contributor to the most successful biosimilar launch in history, with UDENYCA.

Renelle graduated with honors in Kinesiology from UC Berkeley and earned her MBA with high honors from Golden Gate University.

Doug Neely

Market Access

Doug Neely

Doug brings extensive experience in Market Access, having supported dozens of product launches across various disease states, including both oral and physician-administered drugs. His expertise spans patient and provider support programs, field reimbursement and payer teams, health policy, value messaging, HEOR, distribution, trade, pricing, contracting, and payer strategy.

Doug has worked as a consulting partner with biopharma companies and in-house, leading the development of several Market Access departments. His contributions have been recognized through national presentations and multiple publications.

Doug holds a B.A. from Wake Forest University and an MHA from the Medical College of Virginia/VCU. Outside of work, he enjoys cycling, traveling, and outdoor activities. Doug is also actively involved in his community, coaching youth sports teams and holding leadership positions in not-for-profits focused on children, equity, and healthcare access.

Eric Kassel, PharmD

Medical Affairs

Eric Kassel, PharmD

Eric Kassel is an accomplished medical affairs professional with over 25 years of experience in the pharmaceutical, biotech, and medical device industries. He excels in team-focused, values-based leadership, driving corporate medical affairs performance to foster company growth and enhance patient lives through superior scientific products.

Eric has successfully led the establishment and expansion of multi-therapeutic medical affairs functions, building frameworks from inception to company buyout. His expertise spans a broad range of therapeutic areas, including migraine, low back pain, movement disorders, immunology, allergy, respiratory, neuroscience, psychiatry, urology, ophthalmology, facial aesthetics, dermatology, and plastic surgery.

Known for his dedication, flexibility, and positive work ethic, Eric is recognized as a leader who achieves goals and integrates global medical affairs systems, policies, and procedures. His exceptional clinical, communication, and relationship skills have made him a respected team player and leader in the industry.

Eric currently serves as the Consultant Director of Medical Affairs at Alfasigma USA, Inc., and has held senior roles at Azura Ophthalmics, eNeura Inc., Satsuma Pharmaceuticals, Alder Biopharmaceuticals, Circassia Pharmaceuticals, and Allergan. He holds a Doctor of Pharmacy from the University of Illinois, Chicago, and a Bachelor of Science in Biology with a minor in Chemistry from Illinois State University. Eric is a registered pharmacist in Illinois since 1995.

Sudip Saha

Market Access, Analytics

Sudip Saha

Sudip has 12+ years of experience in the pharmaceutical and biotech industry, specializing in market access, operations and data analytics.

During his decade at Genentech, Sudip drove substantial operational efficiencies and cost savings. He implemented forecast modeling and process automation, which reduced contract administration times by over 90%. His management of rebate and service fee contracts with payers, PBMs, providers, and SP partners ensured compliance and optimized financial performance.

At Envision Pharma Group, Sudip led high-impact consulting engagements that delivered measurable results for biopharmaceutical clients. He developed value messages for new product launches, increasing market penetration and revenue. His strategic market and pricing assessments facilitated successful market entries and competitive positioning. Projects included market landscape analysis, new product launch planning, portfolio contracting, and financial modeling. Clients included Gilead, Teikoku, and AbbVie, covering disease areas such as HDV, pain management, rheumatoid arthritis, women’s health, diabetes, hepatitis, migraine, ophthalmology, and dermatology.

Sudip earned his Bachelor’s in Industrial Engineering & Operations Research from the University of California, Berkeley, a graduate certificate in Product Creation & Innovative Manufacturing from Stanford University, and is a certified Lean Six Sigma Black Belt.

Chad Straughan, PharmD

Pharmacy

Chad Straughan, PharmD

Chad Straughan, PharmD has over 20 years experience in the pharmaceutical and retail pharmacy industry focusing on the development and management of patient access and procurement of medicine and specialty products in various disease states.

He began his career with Eli Lilly, after graduating from pharmacy school, in the diabetes marketplace relaunching Humalog and launching numerous first to market products, including Byetta, Cialis, Actos, Cymbalta, Effient, and Livalo. He transitioned his career from sales to training, developing national training programs specializing in customer service and customer relationships. He then moved onto management and into the hospital account space developing programs focusing on access to C suite executives. In 2012, he entered the startup medical device space as medical director. He developed the sales strategy and implementation plan, creating the sales force initiatives, the hiring of the sales force, and preparing them for the launch of a one a kind medical device product in the drug diversion space. He also worked closely with the DEA to ensure compliance and synergy existed to help reduce drug diversion in the healthcare space.

Getting back to his roots, most recently, he has been the owner and pharmacist in charge of a large independent retail pharmacy he established in 2014. He developed and implemented a business plan that focused on diversifying the pharmacy retail space and leveraging pharmaceutical market access and patient services to grow the pharmacy business into a highly successful and sought after retail pharmacy, partnering in the pharmaceutical manufacturer space covering South Carolina and Georgia.

He also serves as an expert pharmacist, advising law firms representing local and national clients on malpractice cases.

Chad completed his undergraduate and earned his Doctorate of Pharmacy from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill. He currently resides in Mount Pleasant, SC with his 4 children.

Darcy Duckenfield

Patient Services

Darcy Duckenfield

Darcy has over 15 years of client relationship and Patient Support Program leadership experience. Darcy held senior leadership positions at EVERSANA Life Sciences and the Lash Group, where he designed and implemented complex access, affordability, and adherence patient support/reimbursement programs. His extensive healthcare industry experience includes leading day to day operations of 100+ person reimbursement programs, in addition to client relationship and business development leadership responsibility for those programs. He has experience across a broad range of therapeutic areas including oncology, neurology, rare, gene therapy and digital therapeutics.

Prior to joining Rx Access Partners, Darcy developed a digital patient engagement and adherence solution and led patient support programs at PatientsLikeMe.