ALEXANDRIA, Va., Feb. 18, 2011 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ — The
National Association of Chain Drug Stores (NACDS) and the National
Community Pharmacists Association (NCPA) have sent a
joint letter to every Governor and State Medicaid Director,
explaining the importance of pharmacies in Medicaid, offering
recommendations, and expressing a desire to work together to cut
costs without endangering Medicaid beneficiaries’ access to
pharmacy prescription drug services.
(Logo: http://photos.prnewswire.com/prnh/20100106/DC33253LOGO)
“Community pharmacies play a vital role in the Medicaid program
as the backbone of its drug benefit,” NACDS President and CEO
Steven C. Anderson, IOM, CAE and NCPA Executive Vice President and
CEO Kathleen Jaeger wrote in the letter. “Local pharmacists can
provide expert medication counseling and other cost-saving services
that help mitigate the $290 billion that is estimated to be spent
on an annual basis as the result of patients who do not adhere
properly to their medication regimen.
“Every day, community pharmacies witness firsthand the struggles
that patients face in order to pay for their medications as well as
the financial burden states face in attempting to provide for the
needs of their Medicaid beneficiaries,” they added.
“Community pharmacies are ready and willing to work
collaboratively with CMS, individual states and other payers to
help reduce health costs.”
The recommendations include:
- Community pharmacies are leading the way to maximize generic
drugs’ appropriate use. Community pharmacy has a higher rate
of generic dispensing (71%) than any other practice setting,
including mail order pharmacy. The Massachusetts
fee-for-service Medicaid program has a generic dispensing ra‘/>”/>
SOURCE
