The Access Group began in 1998 as an independent health care communications agency known as Access Communications, Inc. The agency was created to address a pressing need within the pharmaceutical industry: to provide effective communications that drive brand share to the various constituencies that influence the demand for prescription drugs. Access Communications initially focused its attention on the dynamic channel of national and local labor unions, a significant managed market segment that encompasses millions of patient lives.

Over the next 12 years, Access Communications expanded its strategic services to other managed markets channels and to all disciplines of health care professionals and patients. The firm added an award-winning promotional division (MedAccess), as well as a dedicated CME division (StrataMed). Other divisions—Fusion Medical Communications, Catalyst, Promidian, and S3 – Strategic Selling Solutions—emerged to address the unique and growing needs of an expanding client roster.

Today, the Access Group is a premier professional services firm specializing in health care communications and strategy consulting in the pharmaceutical and biotech industries through a network of 7 distinct—but interconnected—companies. The Access Group brings strategy, communications, marketing, advertising, and selling solutions to nearly 50 pharmaceutical and biotechnology clients.

Access Communications is created to serve the emerging needs of managed markets decision makers. A division of the agency is established to work exclusively with national and local labor unions on behalf of pharmaceutical clients.

Access Communications sets up a medical education division to meet the increasing demand for this service offering. Another division is founded to provide strategic services to employers in the managed markets segment.

Cementing its position as a premier managed markets agency, Access Communications formally establishes its managed care division. The agency establishes a West Coast presence with MedAccess, a promotional advertising and medical communications firm based in San Diego, California.

With earned services exceeding $20 million annually, Access Communications is recognized by INC magazine as one of the Top 500 Fastest Growing Companies.

Fusion Medical Communications, a unique division with dual expertise in managed markets and medical communications, is established.

Catalyst, specializing in the delivery of tactical solutions for managed markets customers, joins the Access Communications family, along with StrataMed, an independent provider of CME training programs for the medical community.

The Access Communications public auction process is a huge success, culminating in a partnership with Monitor Clipper Partners. The partnership endows Access Communications with additional capital and strategic resources to realize its growth objectives.

The Access Group is formed to offer complete lifecycle management through an integrated suite of disciplines. Following the official launch of its strategy discipline (Promidian) and its selling solutions discipline (S3), the firm grows its client list nearly 50%, from approximately 30 in 2009 to 45 in 2010.