Public Employee Press

Deadline April 1 for mandatory mail order drugs

The transition period for the new mandatory mail-order program for maintenance drugs ends April 1. That means neighborhood pharmacies can no longer accept members’ prescriptions for drugs for chronic illnesses such as heart disease, high blood pressure and arthritis. These drugs must be purchased through the mail-order program run by Express Scripts, Inc. for the employees, retirees and dependents in the DC 37 Health and Security Plan.

The mail-order program became mandatory Jan. 1. But the plan allowed local pharmacies to fill such prescriptions for a three-month transition period to allow members and retirees to get used to the new requirement.

“People seem to be adapting to the mandatory mail program without much of a problem,” said Rosaria R. Esperon, administrator of the plan. In December, the mail-order program processed 19,973 claims. The number nearly doubled to 37,861 the following month.

Savings for members
The plan decided last year to make mail purchase mandatory for maintenance drugs to save money for members, cut costs for the plan and protect the benefit. As medication costs soar, the drug benefit has been hit by a gap of more than $40 million a year between revenues and expenses.

To make the mail-order program more convenient, Express Scripts will now accept prescriptions for up to one year, compared to six months in the past. To take advantage of the longer period, patients must, of course, get their physician to write one-year prescriptions.

Members and retirees who take maintenance drugs may call Express Scripts at 800-233-7139 to learn more about the mail-order program, which saves participants one-third of what they would pay at a local pharmacy.

Postage-free envelopes for the program can be obtained by calling 212-815-1531. Filling prescriptions through the mail usually takes up to 14 days, but ordering on-line at www.express-scripts.com can cut the time substantially.