Win with Generics is a Win-Win for Blue Cross and Blue Shield of Kansas and its Members; Prime Therapeutics' Member Incentive Program Shows Positive First Quarter Results.Business Editors/Health/Medical Writers ST. PAUL St. Paul as a missionary he fearlessly confronts the “perils of waters, of robbers, in the city, in the wilderness.” [N.T.: II Cor. 11:26] See : Bravery , Minn.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--April 14, 2004 A targeted member generic drug generic drug, a drug sold or prescribed under the nonproprietary name of its active ingredients or under a generally descriptive name rather than under a brand or trade name. incentive program implemented by Blue Cross and Blue Shield Blue Shield A US not-for-profit health care insurer that is a reimbursement intermediary for physicians. Cf Blue Cross. of Kansas (BCBSKS) and Prime Therapeutics, LLC (Logical Link Control) See "LANs" under data link protocol. LLC - Logical Link Control (Prime) in 2003 proved successful at encouraging participants to choose generic drugs. The Win with Generics(SM) program offered an immediate financial award in the form of a one-time waived copayment co·pay·ment n. A fixed fee that subscribers to a medical plan must pay for their use of specific medical services covered by the plan. copayment, n when selected members asked for the generic drug. Of the targeted members, 15 percent switched from a more costly brand-name drug Noun 1. brand-name drug - a drug that has a trade name and is protected by a patent (can be produced and sold only by the company holding the patent) proprietary drug drug - a substance that is used as a medicine or narcotic to a generic equivalent. More significant, 89 percent of members who switched from a brand-name drug to a generic equivalent during the Win with Generics program stayed with the generic drug for their next refill. "It's truly a win-win for Blue Cross and its members," said Graham Bailey Graham Bailey was a former professional footballer who played 33 league games for Huddersfield Town and 20 games for Sheffield United as a fullback. , vice president of corporate communications and public relations public relations, activities and policies used to create public interest in a person, idea, product, institution, or business establishment. By its nature, public relations is devoted to serving particular interests by presenting them to the public in the most with BCBSKS. "For every one percent increase we have in the use of generic drugs by our members, we can save more than $816,000 in claims expense. In addition, the high percentage of participants who stayed with the generic drugs after giving them a try indicates that these people learned first-hand that generic drugs are every bit as safe and effective as their brand-name counterparts, but are a fraction of the cost." The program yielded a savings of $6.99 per targeted member (members who received a letter as part of the program) and $45.65 per utilizing member (members who switched to the generic equivalent). "The savings from the initial switch to the generic equivalent are significant, even with the waived copayment factored in," said David Lassen, senior director of clinical utilization programs at Prime. "But the long-term savings come from the consumers' continued use of the generic product. That's our goal, and preliminary results show this program is effective in achieving that." Win with Generics was implemented in July 2003 and ran through October 2003. Prime, the pharmacy benefit management A Pharmacy Benefit Manager (PBM) is a third party administrator of prescription drug programs. They are primarily responsible for processing and paying prescription drug claims. partner of BCBSKS, identified members who had recently been prescribed one of 45 costly brand-name drugs that pharmacists can easily substitute with a generic equivalent. BCBSKS mailed a letter to members informing them to ask their pharmacists or doctors to switch their brand-name drugs to appropriate generic drugs. The program is unique in that members who switched to the generic drug automatically received a waived copayment at the pharmacy - no coupons were needed. "With the average brand-name drug costing double or triple the generic, we must continue to find ways to educate our members about generic drugs," Bailey said. "Using generic drugs can help control rising health care premiums for all members." Bailey explained that, just like their brand-name counterparts, generic drugs are: -- FDA-approved and regulated. -- Equal to the brand-name drug in terms of safety and effectiveness. -- Made with the same active ingredients. About BCBSKS Blue Cross and Blue Shield of Kansas is an independent licensee of the Blue Cross and Blue Shield Association
About Prime Therapeutics Prime Therapeutics, LLC is a pharmacy benefits management company dedicated to providing innovative, clinically based, cost-effective pharmacy solutions for its clients and their members. Providing services nationwide, its client base includes several Blue Cross Blue Shield plans, employers, union groups and third-party administrators. Headquartered in St. Paul, MN, Prime Therapeutics is collectively owned by several Blue Cross Blue Shield plans, subsidiaries or affiliates of those plans. Learn more at www.primetherapeutics.com. |
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