AscellaHealth Strengthens Leadership to Drive Growth of AscellaOne Pharmacy Platform, Appoints Johanna van Nijkerk as Vice President of Business Development

AscellaHealth has appointed Johanna van Nijkerk as its new Vice President of Business Development, bringing more than 20 years of experience in healthcare benefits to the company. In her new role, she will support the continued growth of AscellaOne, the company's pharmacy benefits enablement platform that provides employers, health plans, and pharmacy benefit managers (PBMs) with a flexible, modular approach to delivering affordable pharmacy services.

Van Nijkerk joins AscellaHealth from SlateRx, where she served as AVP of Business Development and helped develop strategic partnerships with major national brokerage organisations and CoreTrust, the company's group purchasing organisation partner. Earlier, she spent nearly two decades at Cigna Healthcare and Express Scripts, taking on progressively senior positions, including Vice President of Sales, Strategy & Business Development for National Accounts, Senior Account Executive, and Coalition Lead.

“Johanna’s reputation in this industry speaks for itself,” says Dea Belazi, chief executive officer, AscellaHealth. “She has spent her career building long-standing, trusted relationships with key industry stakeholders, making her an ideal fit as we continue to expand the reach and power of AscellaOne. Her deep national accounts expertise and consultative approach are exactly what our clients and prospects need as they navigate a changing regulatory environment and a push to more open, unbundled and transparent options.” 

During her career, Van Nijkerk has managed complex employer healthcare portfolios with more than 2.5 million annual claims, maintaining a 100% client retention rate. She is known for a consultative leadership approach and for translating complex healthcare and pharmacy benefit solutions into practical strategies that help organisations address business challenges and improve outcomes.

“I’m excited to join AscellaHealth at such a pivotal moment of growth and expansion,” says van Nijkerk. “Decades in this industry have taught me that behind every contract is a plan sponsor or payer trying to do right by their members, sometimes with poor visibility or one high-cost speciality claim standing between them and keeping the lights on. As more personalised, individualised therapies become the norm, financial and operational models need to evolve with them. AscellaHealth has a track record combining expertise, customisation and innovation to improve access and affordability, even in the most complex categories of medication. That's a rare and meaningful starting point for AscellaOne as it brings pharmacy payers and vendor partners together within its modular ecosystem.” 

Beyond her corporate roles, Van Nijkerk has participated in industry and community leadership initiatives, including serving on the Dallas American Heart Association's Executive Leadership Team and as a Steering Committee member for Worldwide Employee Benefits' Dallas chapter. She holds an International Business degree from Hanze University of Applied Sciences in the Netherlands and speaks Dutch, English, German, and Spanish. She is also scheduled to attend RosettaFest 2026 in Nashville, where she will engage with plan sponsors, payers, and industry partners about AscellaOne and the future of pharmacy benefits.