This is an article that appeared in the Detroit Free
Press newspaper here in Michigan that I thought more
people should read?

Lacking a scanner here, I am forced to type this in and
hope it is readable to everyone. :-)

Ohio firm helps slash drug costs 

Low-income people pay $7 for medicine 

By Patricia Anstett - Free Press Medical Writer 

------------------- 

Katheleen Rock used to wonder: Which drug would she forgo this
month? 

Rock, 62, of Commerce Township couldn't afford the seven costly
medicines she and her disabled husband, Randall, 54, take. The
retiree was turned down when her doctor applied to get free
drugs through a pharmaceutical firm's patient assistance
program, she says "There was none I could cut out without
suffering an inconvenience." 

A neighbor told the Rocks about Prescription Relief, a
2-year-old, Dublin, Ohio, company that completes paperwork and
obtains drugs for low-income people for $7 a prescription.
There is no age requirement. Individuals can earn as much as
$19,0000 a year; couples can earn $31,000. Medicare, but not
Medicaid, recipients are eligible. 

The Rocks now spend $49 a month for heart, diabetes, and
glaucoma medicines through the program, compared with their
previous $400 a month, which they charged to a credit card. 

Prescription Relief began with pilot programs in Michigan, Ohio,
Nevada, and Florida, but recently went nationwide. It has
access to 2,000 brand-name drugs. It has filled 9,000
prescriptions, including more than 1,000 in Michigan, in the
last six months, says Douglas Pierce, director of operation.
Michigan's Oakland County was one of the first counties where
the program was offered. 

The company charges a $25 membership fee for the first year and
$20 for a subsequent year. The drugs arrive at the doctor's
office every three months and take from four to six weeks to
receive from the date of application. 

Pierce estimates the average savings at $400-$600 a month. The
company expedites a lengthy process that requires doctors to
apply to pharmaceutical patient assistance programs on behalf
of their patients. In exchange for tax benefits, most drug
companies offer free or reduced-cost medicines to low-income
people whose doctors fill out the paperwork. 

But the job can be time-consuming, and not all doctors want to
spend the time filling out forms Pierce said. Doctors or their
patients must spend time downloading application forms from the
Internet or need to know company toll-free numbers to get
forms. "It's a lot of work," Pierce says. 

Call 1-866-378-4686 or visit www.prescriptionrelief.com 

See www.needymeds.com to obtain forms for physicians to apply
directly to drug company programs. 

--------------- 

Contact Patricia Anstett at 1-313-222-5021 or
anstett{at}freepress.com 


>
>        ,                          ,
>      o/      Charles.Angelich      \o       ,
>       __o/
>     / >          USA, MI           < \   __\__
 

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