Member and Community Relations Update

Understanding the Differences between HANS Agreements and Single Case Agreements

by Jennifer Borrillo and the MCR Team

Hemophilia Alliance Network Services (HANS) was created in January 2017 by the Hemophilia Alliance to facilitate contracting opportunities between insurers, PBMs, stop-loss carriers, self-funded employers and Hemophilia Treatment Centers (HTCs) efficiently across geographic areas for high-cost bleeding disorder medications. HANS is a subspecialty national network of HTCs organized as a preferred provider organization (PPO) network, which aims to:

• Help HTCs remain in or gain access to payer and PBM networks by delivering competitively priced bleeding disorder medications and integrated best-in-class clinical and pharmacy services with regional and/or national coverage;
• Align payer needs with HTCs in areas such as billing, collection, reporting, and competitive price points under broader group terms; and
• Reduce administrative burden by providing a streamlined method for payers to contract for bleeding disorder medication distribution and clinical care without contracting with each individual HTC.

HANS agreements thus play a role similar to single case agreements (SCAs) and letters of agreement (LOAs), insofar as all aim to connect patients, payers, and HTCs for the provision of high-quality care and cost-effective pharmacy services. But HANS agreements are designed to establish permanent in-network status, avoiding the need for temporary one-off exceptions. HANS streamlines payer and provider integration to bypass case-by-case administrative burdens and negotiates volume or blanket arrangements rather than individual patient approvals.

To date, most HANS arrangements have been local or regional rather than nationwide in scope. We are excited to report that HANS recently has executed two broader national PBM contracts – and continues to discuss future opportunities with additional larger payers and PBMs.

As noted in the February 2026 newsletter, SCAs continue to be a valuable path forward for out-of-network HTCs to resolve individual coverage issues. An SCA is a one-time contract between a payer and/or employer and an HTC and its pharmacy that sets specific rates and rules to cover a single patient to secure more reasonable pricing for a specific drug or drugs for a specified period. Your HTC does not have to be signed onto the HANS network to engage in an SCA opportunity.

A High-Level Comparison of SCAs and HANS Opportunities

To summarize, HANS opportunities are network-based contracting arrangements that connect participating HTCs with regional and national payers through a standardized PPO structure, reducing administrative burden while expanding access and contracting opportunities. SCA opportunities are broker or HTC-led one-off opportunities — individualized, employer-specific arrangements that begin with a savings inquiry and may result in an SCA for one or more members. Together, both HANS and SCAs are approaches that allow the Hemophilia Alliance to support both immediate employer-specific savings opportunities and broader strategic payer partnerships for HTC sustainability. For additional details on HTCs’ roles with respect to each category of opportunities, please click here.

Remember the Hemophilia Alliance does not charge members for either of these services and WE WORK FOR YOU!!