UnitedHealth Group logo
UnitedHealth Group
Independence, Missouri

Staff Pharmacist Per Diem

PharmacistNo weekendsPer Diem

Listed compensation

$44-$79/hr

The week · per this posting · Monday – Friday

Ask the employer about the work setting, call expectations, nights and shift pattern and time off.

Posted 1mo ago · Verified live

Job Description

Explore opportunities with CPS, part of the Optum family of businesses. We’re dedicated to crafting and delivering innovative hospital and pharmacy solutions for better patient outcomes across the entire continuum of care.

With CPS, you’ll work alongside our team of more than 2,500 pharmacy professionals, technology experts, and industry leaders to drive superior financial, clinical, and operational performance for health systems nationwide. Ready to help shape the future of pharmacy and hospital solutions? Join us and discover the meaning behind Caring. Connecting. Growing together.

The Per Diem Staff Pharmacist will have the opportunity to apply your clinical expertise by evaluating and interpreting medication orders, compounding, and dispensing prescriptions in accordance with legal and professional standards.

You will play a critical role in identifying, preventing, and resolving medication-related issues to ensure safe, effective, and individualized patient care.

Through the application of evidence-based protocols, you will promote clinically sound and cost-effective drug therapy, contributing to improved patient outcomes and advancing the standard of pharmaceutical care.

Facility: Three Trails Behavioral Hospital will provide innovative, evidence-based care for children and adolescents, adults and seniors in a secure environment conducive to healing. With programming tailored to the needs of each individual, treatment plans will focus on achieving positive outcomes.

Schedule: Monday- Friday 8am-4:30pm. This position will work as needed

Primary Responsibilities

  • Review, verify, and dispense medication orders to ensure appropriateness, safety, and accuracy
  • Provide clinical pharmacy services, including medication therapy management and pharmacokinetic dosing and monitoring
  • Collaborate with physicians, nurses, and care teams to optimize medication regimens for hospitalized patients
  • Oversee sterile and non-sterile compounding activities, ensuring compliance with USP and hospital standards
  • Monitor patient outcomes and medication safety, identifying and preventing adverse drug events
  • Supervise and support pharmacy technicians and interns, ensuring efficient and compliant workflow
  • Ensure regulatory and accreditation compliance, including Joint Commission, state, and federal requirements

You’ll be rewarded and recognized for your performance in an environment that will challenge you and give you clear direction on what it takes to succeed in your role as well as provide development for other roles you may be interested in.

Required Qualifications

  • ACPE-accredited pharmacy degree (PharmD preferred)
  • Active Missouri Pharmacist license in good standing
  • 1+ years of pharmacy experience

Preferred Qualifications

3+ years of pharmacy working in a behavioral hospital setting

Pay is based on several factors including but not limited to local labor markets, education, work experience, certifications, etc. In addition to your salary, we offer benefits such as, a comprehensive benefits package, incentive and recognition programs, equity stock purchase and 401k contribution (all benefits are subject to eligibility requirements).

No matter where or when you begin a career with us, you’ll find a far-reaching choice of benefits and incentives. The hourly pay for this role will range from $44.00 to $79.00 per hour based on full-time employment. We comply with all minimum wage laws as applicable.

At UnitedHealth Group, our mission is to help people live healthier lives and make the health system work better for everyone. We believe everyone–of every race, gender, sexuality, age, location and income–deserves the opportunity to live their healthiest life.

Today, however, there are still far too many barriers to good health which are disproportionately experienced by people of color, historically marginalized groups and those with lower incomes.

We are committed to mitigating our impact on the environment and enabling and delivering equitable care that addresses health disparities and improves health outcomes — an enterprise priority reflected in our mission.

UnitedHealth Group is an Equal Employment Opportunity employer under applicable law and qualified applicants will receive consideration for employment without regard to race, national origin, religion, age, color, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity, disability, or protected veteran status, or any other characteristic protected by local, state, or federal laws, rules, or regulations.

UnitedHealth Group is a drug - free workplace. Candidates are required to pass a drug test before beginning employment.

Key Responsibilities

The Staff Pharmacist will review, verify, and dispense medication orders while providing clinical pharmacy services such as pharmacokinetic dosing and medication therapy management. They will also collaborate with care teams to optimize patient regimens and ensure compliance with regulatory and safety standards.

Requirements

Candidates must hold an ACPE-accredited pharmacy degree and an active Missouri Pharmacist license. A minimum of one year of pharmacy experience is required, with preference given to those with behavioral hospital experience.

Key Skills

Regulatory complianceJoint Commission standardsDrug therapy optimizationPharmacy operationsInterdisciplinary collaboration

Pharmacist Career Context

Of the 40 active Pharmacy listings this role was benchmarked against, 40% are remote, 48% have no call, 75% require no weekends.

The cost-of-living index for Missouri is 90.8 (US average = 100; BEA Regional Price Parities (2024)), so the posted ~$128k midpoint carries the purchasing power of roughly $141k in an average-cost state. 60.1% of Missouri clinicians report burnout symptoms in WeekdayDoc's Burnout Index (2026-01 data).

How many Pharmacy jobs are remote?
MeasureThis jobMarket
Work-life score6.4 / 10 · top 25% in pharmacyranked against 10,330 Pharmacy listingslisting-based score, 0–10
Listed pay$92k–$164kPharmacy median $187k (middle half $146k–$187k)70 comparable listings, Oct 2026
Cost-of-living adjusted pay~$141k in purchasing powerMissouri index 90.8 (US = 100)BEA Regional Price Parities (2024)
Pharmacy listings in Missouri197 active10,140 nationallylive on WeekdayDoc, Oct 2026
Work settingon-sitepeers: 40% remote · 48% no call · 75% no weekends40 benchmarked listings
UnitedHealth Groupsilver tier, 75/100Top Employers work-life index1,414 active listings
Sources: WeekdayDoc live listing index (10,330 Pharmacy listings), Top Employers work-life index, BEA Regional Price Parities (2024); as of Oct 2026. Same values as the Weekday Verdict and Market Insights on this page.

Work-Life Balance Analysis

WeekdayDoc's proprietary algorithm rates Staff Pharmacist Per Diem at UnitedHealth Group a 6.4 out of 10 for work-life balance — classified as good. This places the position in the top 25% in Pharmacy — ranked against 10,330 active Pharmacy listings on WeekdayDoc. Contributing factors include no weekend requirements.

Top contract/1099 Pharmacist Jobs

39 matches · ranked by pay

Salary Distribution27 jobs

7
<$165k
13
$165k-185k
4
$185k-205k
3
$205k-225k

Annual compensation range

Benefits & Perks25 jobs

401k / retirement match
100% this job
Sign-on bonus
16%
PSLF eligible
4%

Share of similar jobs offering each benefit

#1

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$87.25-$122.15/hr
#2

Clinical Pharmacist II - NBMC (Per Diem, Variable)Per Diem

NorthBay Health · Fairfield, California

$99.25-$120.69/hr
#3

Clinical Pharmacist II - VCVH (Per Diem, Variable)

$99.25-$120.69/hr
#4

Clinical Pharmacist

$72.42-$114.33/hr
+ 37 more · ranked by pay

Work-life snapshot

median 2.8this job 6.4
Better work-life than 90% of Pharmacy listings

Listing-based score, 0–10, across 10,330 comparable listings. Shaded area = the share scoring below this one.

  • No weekends
UnitedHealth Group logo

About UnitedHealth Group

Hospitals and Health Care
Eden Prairie , Minnesota
10,000+ employees

Benefits & Perks

Comprehensive benefits package
Incentive and recognition programs
Equity stock purchase
401k contribution

Living in Independence

Typical 3-bedroom home value
$220k
Typical market rent
$1,385/mo
Residents’ average commute
24 min
Metro price indexU.S. average = 100
92.5
State income tax
Up to 5.3%
Sources & methodology

Sources: Zillow home values (Aug 2026), Zillow market rents (Aug 2026), U.S. Census ACS 2024 five-year.

BEA 2024 · Kansas City, MO-KS metro prices. Housing figures are city-level.

City-level figures. Not a cost-of-living guarantee.