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Medicare cards gaining ground, say sponsors

ALEXANDRIA, Va. -- More than 860,000 Medicare recipients have signed up for pharmacy-friendly Medicare-endorsed prescription discount cards since June 1, and they've saved a bundle, according to research from the National Association of Chain Drug Stores.

Medicare prescription cards that encourage beneficiaries to use community pharmacies have saved those patients more than $118 million, NACDS reported Oct. 29. That includes more than $93 million for seniors using the $600 annual credit and more than $25.8 million for those who paid for their cards.

"Medicare prescription discount cards, focused on allowing seniors to obtain their medications from their local pharmacy, account for more than 866,000 enrollees and more than $118 million in savings," said NACDS President and Chief Executive Officer Craig Fuller.

"Now more than ever, Medicare beneficiaries are able to receive savings on prescription drugs from their neighborhood pharmacist," Fuller added in a statement clearly aimed at the public and at lawmakers still mulling the role that prescription benefit management companies and their mail order pharmacy divisions will play in a Medicare drug benefit program.

NACDS also is promoting the additional savings drug manufacturers can provide through so-called wraparound programs. Those programs provide additional savings from drug makers to expand the $1,200 credit for qualifying low-income seniors once the initial maximum, federal subsidy is used up before the card programs planned expiration in January 2006. Card sponsors include wraparounds in their card programs to enhance savings for beneficiaries.

The independent side of pharmacy also is touting the benefits of pharmacy-centric Medicare cards. According to the National Community Pharmacists Association, more than 200,000 Medicare enrollees have chosen its Community Care Rx card, and enrollment continues at a rate of 5,000 to 10,000 per week.

"Community Care Rx works for both Medicare beneficiaries and CCRx network pharmacies," NCPA noted. "An open formulary allows pharmacies to provide a wide variety of prescription drugs to their patients, and the no-mail-order policy keeps the communication lines open between the-trusted pharmacist and the beneficiary."

A recent analysis of more than 660,000 CCRx prescription transactions showed that Medicare patients were saving an average of 23.6 percent on branded drugs and 48.4 percent on generics, according to NCPA. The group estimates that total savings for beneficiaries who paid for their cards have reached $5.4 million, while those eligible for the $600 annual subsidy have shaved more than $19.5 million from their prescription costs.

Individual drug chains that sponsor their own cards also are reporting big savings and growing interest from Medicare beneficiaries who generally have been slow to embrace the card programs. Walgreen Co. reported late last month that the card its PBM subsidiary, Walgreens Health Initiatives, offers has saved seniors an average of 28 percent on the cost of each prescription, with-total savings of nearly $22 million as of the end of September. "Already, more than 145,000 Medicare beneficiaries are enrolled with WHI's drug discount card, which provides real savings to seniors who didn't have access to prescription discounts before," the chain noted.

WHI President Greg Wasson acknowledged: "Some Medicare beneficiaries may not understand how to get a discount card or choose the right one. But Walgreens pharmacists can guide them through the process."

Also weighing in is CVS Corp., which reported this month that its myPharmaCare prescription card has enlisted more than 50,000 Medicare enrollees who are saving an average of 32 percent. As a pharmacy benefits manager, with real experience in providing patient-focused service, PharmaCare has the ability to deliver the promised benefits of the Medicare discount card program, said Greg Weishar, president and chief executive officer of PharmaCare.

Weishar said that despite reported general criticism that the sign-up process for Medicare drug discount cards is confusing, seniors who have signed up for the myPharmaCare card have found the enrollment process simple and easy to understand. "The enrollment form was easy to complete," said Robert Miller of Randolph, Mass., who said he enrolled for the CVS-sponsored card over the phone.

The re-enrollment period for the Medicare card program began Nov. 15 and runs through the end of the year. So-called pharmacy-centric savings cards include the Pharmacy Care Alliance Card, sponsored by NACDS and Express Scripts; NCPA's CCRx card; the Walgreen and CVS card programs; and McKesson Corp.'s Rx Savings Access Card.

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COPYRIGHT 2004 Gale Group