Pharmacist Priyank Patel, owner of Felicity Pharmacy in New York City, noticed a patient was only picking up her insulin prescription every other month, instead of monthly. He knew it was unlikely she was taking it as prescribed and when asked, her reason was simple: she could not afford the medication each month.
“Patients aren’t going to reach their therapeutic goals if they can’t afford or their insurance doesn’t cover the medication,” said Patel. He noted that navigating the relationship between drug costs, health plans and patients’ ability to afford their medications was not something taught in pharmacy school – but is a large part of the job as a community or retail pharmacist.
Patel knew he could help this patient and turned to Surescripts Real-Time Prescription Benefit to learn more about possible therapeutic alternatives that would be covered by her health plan.