- Industry-leading program provides discounts on more than 8,000
medications, including more than 700 value-priced generics -
- Program can help increase access, medication adherence and savings
for uninsured and underinsured members -
DEERFIELD, Ill.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--
Approximately one in four U.S. adults lacks adequate prescription drug
coverage1, and with both cost savings and access to health
care top of mind for many Americans, Walgreens (NYSE, NASDAQ: WAG) has
introduced a new and improved Prescription Savings Club program -
providing members greater value and covering a more comprehensive range
of medications than any similar offering by any major drugstore chain in
the marketplace today. The program is part of the company’s Well at
Walgreens strategy to make Walgreens America’s first choice for health
and daily living.
The Prescription Savings Club offers discounts on more than 8,000 brand
name and generic medications, and now includes more than 700
value-priced generics – nearly twice the number previously offered – for
as low as $1 per week for a 90-day supply. The use of generics has
resulted in more than $1 trillion in savings to the U.S. health care
system over the last decade (from 1999-2010),2 and now
approximately 50 percent of all brand name drugs on the market have a
generic equivalent available.
Additional benefits of the program include discounts on services at Take
Care Clinics in select Walgreens stores3 and most
immunizations such as a flu shot. The program also is a great option for
pet owners, with discounts on select pet medications with a human
equivalent. In addition, the program offers a 10 percent bonus on
Walgreens, W, and Nice! brand products. The Walgreens Prescription
Savings Club program currently saves members on average $170 per year
and is available through all of the more than 7,800 Walgreens stores
nationwide.
“In today’s challenging economic and health care environment, Walgreens
is focused on becoming a community health care provider to help people
live well, stay well and get well, and our Prescription Savings Club is
an affordable solution for millions of people who struggle to manage
their prescription needs,” said Kermit Crawford, Walgreens president of
pharmacy, health and wellness. “Adequate prescription drug coverage is a
significant issue for millions of Americans, and this program is one of
the ways we’re helping people get the medications and health care
services they need.”
Notably, nearly half (48 percent) of uninsured Americans in fair or poor
health went without a prescription drug because of cost concerns in 2010.4
New and Improved Prescription Savings Club
Features
Member benefits introduced as part of the new and improved program
include:
-
Discounts on more than 8,000 brand name and generic medications
-
Coverage of an additional 300 value-priced generics for a total of
more than 700
-
Risk-free guarantee – if a member does not save at least the cost of
their membership throughout the 12-month period, Walgreens will
reimburse the difference
-
A 10 percent discount on the purchase of all Walgreens brand, W brand
and Nice! products
-
A 10 percent savings on services from Take Care Clinics
-
Discounts of 5-20 percent on most immunizations
-
Additional discounts on diabetes management products and supplies
-
Savings on numerous preventive and lifestyle medications not covered
through many insurance plans
The new and improved Prescription Savings Club also includes benefits
provided under the previous program, such as discounts on diabetic
supplies, nebulizers and compounds and discounts on pet medications with
a human equivalent. Membership is $20 per year for an individual and $35
for a family, including pets. Membership may be cancelled within 30 days
of issue date for full refund.
The club is open to people of all ages who are not enrolled in a
publicly funded health care plan. Those interested in joining can speak
to any Walgreens pharmacist for details.
Prescription Savings Club Helps Drive
Medication Adherence
Walgreens Prescription Savings Club also can help improve medication
adherence rates among members. Non-adherence, or not taking medications
as prescribed, is one of the biggest barriers in treating illness today,
and has been estimated to cost the U.S. health care system $290 billion
per year5. Walgreens data has shown improved adherence scores
of nearly 10 percent6 by Prescription Savings Club members
included in the study.
A more comprehensive list of medications included in the new and
improved program, combined with coverage for medications used to treat
most chronic conditions - such as diabetes and high blood pressure, for
which medication adherence is especially crucial - now provides an
opportunity for improving adherence rates even further.
People can sign up for Walgreens Prescription Savings Club online at (http://www.walgreens.com/pharmacy/psc/psc_overview_page.jsp?ban=rxh_psc_6)
or by visiting any Walgreens pharmacy.
About Walgreens
As the nation's largest drugstore chain with fiscal 2011 sales of $72
billion, Walgreens (www.walgreens.com)
vision is to become America’s first choice for health and daily living.
Each day, Walgreens provides nearly 6 million customers the most
convenient, multichannel access to consumer goods and services and
trusted, cost-effective pharmacy, health and wellness services and
advice in communities across America. Walgreens scope of pharmacy
services includes retail, specialty, infusion, medical facility and mail
service, along with respiratory services. These services improve health
outcomes and lower costs for payers including employers, managed care
organizations, health systems, pharmacy benefit managers and the public
sector. The company operates 7,855 drugstores in all 50 states, the
District of Columbia and Puerto Rico. Take Care Health Systems is a
Walgreens subsidiary that is the largest and most comprehensive manager
of worksite health and wellness centers and in-store convenient care
clinics, with more than 700 locations throughout the country.
1 S. R. Collins, R. Robertson, T. Garber, and M. M. Doty,
Gaps in Health Insurance: Why So Many Americans Experience Breaks in
Coverage and How the Affordable Care Act Will Help, The Commonwealth
Fund, April 2012. (http://www.commonwealthfund.org/Publications/Issue-Briefs/2012/Apr/Gaps-in-Health-Insurance.aspx);
Findings from The Commonwealth Fund Biennial Health Insurance Survey of
2010; Help is on the Horizon: How the Recession Has Left Millions of
Workers Without Health Insurance, and How Health Reform Will Bring
Relief, March 2011. (http://www.commonwealthfund.org/~/media/Files/Publications/Fund%20Report/2011/Mar/1486_Collins_help_on_the_horizon_2010_biennial_survey_report_FINAL_v2.pdf)
2 Research on Savings from Generic Drug Use, by the U.S.
Government Accountability Office: http://www.gao.gov/assets/590/588064.pdf
3 Services are provided by Take Care Health ServicesSM,
an independently owned corporation whose licensed healthcare
professionals are not employed by or agents of Walgreen Co., or its
subsidiaries, including Take Care Health SystemsSM, LLC.
4US
National Library of MedicineNational
Institutes of Health: Americans' access to prescription drugs
stabilizes, 2007-2010., Boukus ER, Carrier ER., Track Rep. 2011
Dec;(27):1-5.
5NEHI
Research Shows Patient Medication Nonadherence Costs Health Care System$290 Billion Annually
6Prescription Savings Club Membership Drives Medication
Adherence, Francis Staskon, PhD; Nikhil Khandelwal, PhD; Janeen
DuChane, PhD; Jim Devine; Presented at the 24th Annual Meeting of the
Academy of Managed Care Pharmacy (AMCP), San Francisco, CA, April 18-20,
2012.
Walgreens
Jim Cohn
jim.cohn@walgreens.com
847-914-2950
or
Dan
Zacchei
Dzacchei@sloanepr.com
212-446-1882
or
http://news.walgreens.com
Source: Walgreens
| Copyright: | Copyright Business Wire 2012 |
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