Abstract: A facility for ordering drugs is described. For each of a number of different drugs, the facility maintains a single outpatient counter of administrations of the drug to outpatients that have not been used as a basis for reordering the drug. For a distinguished one of the drugs, based on the value of the counter of administrations of the distinguished drug, the facility places an order that reorders the distinguished drug at a discounted outpatient price level.

Abstract: A facility for managing distribution of a drug is described. The facility generates an order for the drug on behalf of one or more purchasing hospitals, the order specifying each purchasing hospitals' identity and a quantity of the drug ordered on its behalf. The facility selects the specified identities of the purchasing hospitals and the specified quantities of the drug in a manner that takes advantage of opportunities that one or more distinguished hospitals among the purchasing hospitals have to order the drug at a discounted price. The facility reimburses each purchasing hospital for the drug ordered on its behalf at an undiscounted price. The facility causes the ordered quality of the drug to be physically distributed to one or more consuming hospitals, and causes each consuming hospital to be charged for the distributed quantity of the drug at the undiscounted price.

Abstract: A facility for ordering drugs is described. For each of a number of different drugs, the facility maintains a single outpatient counter of administrations of the drug to outpatients that have not been used as a basis for reordering the drug. For a distinguished one of the drugs, based on the value of the counter of administrations of the distinguished drug, the facility places an order that reorders the distinguished drug at a discounted outpatient price level.