Willis Chandler to Lead Knipper Health as New President and Chief Executive Officer

LAKEWOOD, N.J.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Frazier Healthcare Partners (“Frazier”), a Seattle-based private equity firm focused exclusively on the healthcare sector, today announced its investment in Knipper Health (“Knipper” or the “Company”), a leading therapy initiation partner. Concurrent with the announcement, Willis Chandler has been appointed as President and Chief Executive Officer of Knipper Health.

Knipper helps patients start treatment faster by embedding digital enrollment, real-time benefit investigation, and automated prior authorization directly into provider workflows, which are connected to flexible, scalable fulfillment options, including specialty pharmacy, direct-to-patient cash, samples, free-goods and 3PL provider-administered programs. By customizing delivery to patient needs and optimizing gross-to-net performance, Knipper helps improve outcomes for patients and Biopharma partners alike.

Mr. Chandler is an accomplished healthcare executive with deep experience in pharmaceutical services and brings a strong track record of operational excellence and strategic leadership. Most recently, Mr. Chandler served as Executive in Residence at Frazier, where he supported investments and growth initiatives across the pharmaceutical services ecosystem. Prior to Frazier, Chandler served in several senior leadership positions. Most recently, he was President of Global Pharma Services at Cencora (formerly AmerisourceBergen), overseeing a diverse portfolio including hub services, consulting, outsourced commercial operations, and distribution. Prior to Cencora, Chandler co-founded Shields Health Solutions, a leading specialty pharmacy integrator for health systems, and held leadership roles at CVS Health and in Health Systems and Provider practices.

“Knipper is at the forefront of transforming therapy initiation through a data-enabled, patient-centric platform,” said Nathan Every, General Partner at Frazier. “We are excited to partner with Willis and the Knipper team to build on the Company’s strong foundation and accelerate its growth. Willis’s experience across commercial pharma services makes him well-suited to lead Knipper through its next chapter.”

“I’m thrilled to join Knipper at a time when we are redefining how quickly and efficiently patients begin therapy,” said Mr. Chandler. “By embedding real-time medical and pharmacy automation at the point of care, aligning fulfillment to patient needs, and powering decisions with actionable data, I look forward to accelerating our mission to create a faster, more efficient path from order to therapy.”

Mr. Chandler succeeds Michael Laferrera, who successfully led Knipper for the past thirteen years as President and five and a half years as CEO. Under Mr. Laferrera’s tenure, the Company expanded its core service offerings and completed multiple acquisitions. He will continue his work with Knipper as a valued member of the Board of Directors.

Frank Segrave, Knipper’s Chairman of the Board, shared, “Knipper is very well positioned to lead the next evolution in therapy access through a fully integrated, technology-driven platform. Willis brings the expertise and vision to scale this model for Biopharma, and we look forward to his leadership in our next phase of growth.”

About Knipper Health
Knipper Health is redefining therapy initiation by creating faster, more efficient pathways to care. With coordinated fulfillment options, including specialty pharmacy, direct-to-patient cash, samples, free-goods and 3PL provider-administered programs, Knipper customizes delivery to patient needs while optimizing gross-to-net performance. Real-time data and analytics power each stage of the journey to continuously refine therapy initiation and maximize resource efficiency. By combining speed, precision, and scale, Knipper helps patients start treatment sooner, while delivering measurable impact for Biopharma partners. For more information, visit www.knipper.com.

About Frazier Healthcare Partners
Founded in 1991, Frazier Healthcare Partners is a private equity firm focused exclusively on the healthcare industry. Since its inception, Frazier has raised over $11 billion of capital for private funds and co-investment opportunities and has invested in more than 200 companies over 33 years. Frazier has a philosophy of partnering with strong management teams while leveraging its internal operating resources and network to build exceptional companies. Frazier is headquartered in Seattle, WA, with an office in New York City, and invests broadly across the U.S., Canada, and Europe. For more information about Frazier, visit www.frazierhealthcare.com/home.