+ Prescription Assistance Programs Better Treatment for Patients While Saving Clinic Dollars Suzanne McCluskey, MS-2 Julie Turner, MS-2 The University of Alabama School of Medicine

+ Prescription Assistance Programs (PAPs) Pharmaceutical companies provide medication assistance to people with financial need Free of charge Nominal fee or shipping/handling charge Sliding scale fee based on income Patient, with doctor’s assistance, submits an application Pharmaceutical company sends medication directly to patient

+ Patient Eligibility Income limits determined by the program Usually less than 200% of the Federal Poverty Level May require IRS Form 4506t if unemployed Limited or no prescription insurance coverage Limited or no public assistance (Medicaid) US resident or citizen

+ Additional Items Needed Prescribing physician’s signature Prescribing physician’s DEA# Proof of patient eligibility Tax return Paystub Potentially: Original prescription signed by the physician Original application form provided by pharmaceutical company Letter of financial status IRS Form 4506t

+ PAP Pilot Study: Background EAB operates through the M-Power Ministries Clinic one night per week 12 patients are seen on EAB clinic nights ½ of these patients are residents of Lovelady Women’s Shelter Lovelady accounts for 10% of clinic’s total patient population

+ Study Parameters Timeframe: July-December 2009 Patient population: Lovelady Women’s Shelter Reliable patient address Ease in contacting patient Ease in dispensing medication Total # of patients included: 44 < 2% of total yearly patient load Total # of applications submitted: 87 Only free of charge programs were used

+ Results Applications submitted: 87 Applications accepted to date: 55 The remaining 32 applications are either pending or have been rejected Prescriptions dispensed to date: 65 Refills included

+ Results Total cost of drugs received to date: $25, Annual budget for prescription drugs: $18, For < 2% of the patient population, we have saved over 100% of the annual prescription drug budget!!!

+ PAP Websites

+ NeedyMeds

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+ RxAssist

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+ Helpful Hints Consistency Choose your method and stick with it Assign PAP as main task to one or two volunteers Review the applications for errors or omissions Paperwork Complete the form with the patient’s assistance Always submit financial statements Always submit written prescriptions Preparation Keep several blank copies of all forms and applications When possible, fill out physician’s info in advance