How to Fix the Handoffs Where Prior Authorization Workflows Break Down

Prior authorization and enrollment processes are intended to support patient access—but they can they create confusion, delays, and unnecessary barriers. In the second installment of her three-part interview, Tina Valbh, managing partner at PharmaKonnect and co-founder of Tina’s Warriors, examines where these systems most commonly break down, pointing to a critical issue: fragmentation. With multiple vendors, stakeholders, and steps involved, the process can quickly become disjointed, leaving patients caught in the middle.

At the heart of the problem is the sheer number of handoffs. From healthcare providers to patient services, to co-pay vendors and beyond, each transition introduces the potential for delays or miscommunication. While each stakeholder plays a role, the lack of coordination across these touchpoints often results in gaps that disrupt the patient journey before therapy even begins.

Valbh also highlights a frequently overlooked challenge—communication with the patient. While providers and support teams are often kept informed of prior authorization status, patients themselves are left in the dark. Without clear, timely updates, they are unable to anticipate next steps or advocate for their own care, further compounding frustration during an already stressful time.

A more effective approach, she suggests, starts with simplifying workflows and prioritizing transparency. By reducing unnecessary handoffs and ensuring patients are actively informed and engaged throughout the process, organizations can transform prior authorization from a barrier into a more seamless, coordinated experience.

Access the first part of Valbh’s three-part video interview series from Access USA 2026:

• Looking Beyond Launch: Rethinking Long-Term Patient Support

A transcription of her conversation with PC can be found below.

PC: Where do prior authorization and enrollment processes most commonly break down — and what does a smooth, well-coordinated workflow look like?

Valbh: Prior authorizations, break down in the handoff. I feel like there's too many handoffs from one vendor to the next, from the healthcare provider into patient services, patient services needing to connect into a co-pay card vendor, or the doctor having to sign the patient up. There's so many handoffs and so many people involved in this process that the patient gets lost. And for a patient, they don't care who the vendor is. They just see that there's a barrier and a gap that has occurred. And the biggest issue I know that I've had also being a patient is we're not informed. Nobody's telling us what's happening at every stage. We're so concerned about informing the healthcare provider what's happening with prior auth., whether it was denied, whether it was stalled. But nobody is keeping the communication alive for a patient to let the patient know, "Hey, this is what's happening. You may need to do this." And allowing the patient to also get involved and advocate in that process. Now, that process is exhausting, but I do feel in this day and age, more patients are willing to step in and advocate for themselves, and we have to give them the opportunity to do that. So the breakdown happens day one when the prescription's written, and we start handing it off to all the different vendors involved.