Providers can leverage a UnitedHealthcare prescription drug program that offers $20 discounts off certain prescription drug co-payments, to boost medication compliance.
The “Refill and Save Program,” which includes asthma drugs Advair and Symbicort and antidepressants Cymbalta, Effexor XR and Pristiq, reduces a customer’s co-payment for refills by about 40 percent on a typical co-payment plan, when a prescription is refilled in a timely manner. Plan participants who refill their prescriptions via mail order will receive a $50 discount on a 90-day supply of medicine, with a refill deadline of approximately 120 days.
Initial prescriptions will not be eligible for the discounted co-pay, officials said, as the program is focused on encouraging timely refills of needed medications. The program is available to most of UnitedHealthcare’s fully insured commercial health plans.
“Patients with chronic diseases such as asthma and depression who take their medicines regularly and who comply with prescribed treatments are likely to stay healthier. They not only feel better, they can potentially avoid costly medical problems that could result from delaying appropriate therapy,” said Tim Heady, CEO of Minneapolis-based UnitedHealth Pharmaceutical Solutions.
Asthma drugs and antidepressants were selected for the program because the health benefits realized from increased adherence are often seen relatively quickly, according to Heady.
“We anticipate that increased pharmacy costs that result from wider use will be offset by savings in medical costs,” he said.
“Research has clearly shown that individuals are more sensitive than ever to the cost of their medications given the current economy,” said Mark Fendrick, director of the Center for Value Based Insurance Design at the University of Michigan.
UnitedHealthcare estimates that approximately half of its customers who take asthma medicines and 20 percent of its customers who take antidepressants are not compliant with their prescriptions.