Investigators from Oregon State University Have Reported New Data on Pharmacy Practice (Implementation of a Pharmacist-delivered Medicare Counseling Service In a Rural Community Health Center)

2020 AUG 26 (NewsRx) -- By a News Reporter-Staff News Editor at Health Policy and Law Daily -- Data detailed on Drugs and Therapies - Pharmacy Practice have been presented. According to news reporting originating in Corvallis, Oregon, by NewsRx journalists, research stated, “To describe a pharmacist-delivered Medicare counseling service in a rural community health center for providing patients and community members with information and resources to facilitate informed Medicare plan selection(s). Federally-qualified health center.”

Financial support for this research came from Oregon State University College of Pharmacy.

The news reporters obtained a quote from the research from Oregon State University, “Practice innovation: Health center patients and community members met with a pharmacist for individual Medicare counseling. The appointments provided an opportunity to educate clients on Original Medicare and private plan options for supplemental medical and drug coverage, compare specific plans, and assess eligibility for financial assistance programs. Evaluation: Data were collected from client contact forms completed for individuals counseled between July 1, 2015 and June 30, 2018. Data were then summarized with descriptive statistics and analyzed with Fisher exact tests. A total of 47 appointments were completed with 31 unique clients. They were mostly women (n = 18, 58.1%) and aged 65 years or more (n = 17; 54.8%) but evenly divided between patients established with the health center (n = 15; 48.4%) and community members (n = 16; 51.6%). During appointments, the most common topic was an explanation of medical or drug benefits (n = 40; 85.1%) followed by comparison of specific plans (n = 25; 53.2%) and then screening individuals for Original Medicare or private plan eligibility (n = 27; 57.4%). There were no statistically significant differences when comparing topics discussed for current versus new Medicare beneficiaries. During follow-up visits, patients were less likely to be screened for Original Medicare or private plan eligibility (74.2% vs. 25%; P = 0.002), financial assistance programs (77.4% vs. 37.5%; P = 0.011), or have specific plans compared (71.0% vs. 37.5%; P = 0.034). A pharmacist-provided Medicare counseling service in a rural community health center was used by both patients and community members. This may be an effective strategy to improve beneficiary understanding of Medicare benefits and enable the selection of better insurance plans in underserved populations.”

According to the news reporters, the research concluded: “Further research is needed to assess individual-level outcomes and scalability to other settings.”

For more information on this research see: Implementation of a Pharmacist-delivered Medicare Counseling Service In a Rural Community Health Center. Journal of the American Pharmacists Association, 2020;60(4):E79-E85. Journal of the American Pharmacists Association can be contacted at: Elsevier, Radarweg 29, 1043 Nx Amsterdam, Netherlands.

Our news correspondents report that additional information may be obtained by contacting Adriane N. Irwin, Oregon State University, College of Pharmacy, Corvallis, OR 97331, United States.

The direct object identifier (DOI) for that additional information is: https://doi.org/10.1016/j.japh.2020.02.008. This DOI is a link to an online electronic document that is either free or for purchase, and can be your direct source for a journal article and its citation.

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