Pharmacist-facilitated enrollment in medication assistance programs in a private ambulatory care clinic

Efforts to reduce patients' out-of-pocket expenses for prescription drugs by incorporating pharmaceutical manufacturer assistance programs (PMAPs) into a private ambulatory care facility's pharmaceutical services are described.

From March 2001 through March 2002, the clinic's pharmacist prospectively evaluated patients for PMAP enrollment. The pharmacist completed the pharmaceutical manufacturer's application forms for patients identified as candidates for PMAP assistance and helped them obtain documentation. Some companies sent medications directly to patients, and others sent them to the clinic, where they were stored until the patients picked them up. The patients informed the pharmacist when refills were needed, which allowed the pharmacist to review patient records, verify compliance, and ensure proper follow-up. Forty-four patients were enrolled in 22 PMAPs during the year. The mean +/- S.D. annual household income for all patients was 15,631 dollars +/- 7,845 dollars. A total of 115 medication orders were processed for the patients. The mean +/- S.D. number of medications per patient obtained through PMAPs was 2.5 +/- 1.8, and the mean +/- S.D. number of refills was 1.8 +/- 1.0. The total cost of the medications was 48,143 dollars. The pharmacist needed an average of 15-20 minutes to perform the initial patient interview, 10-15 minutes to complete each initial application, and 5-15 minutes to complete a renewal application. Total pharmacist time needed to process each medication order was estimated at about one hour per year.

A pharmacist in a private ambulatory care facility helped patients enroll in PMAPs and reduced the patients' expenses for prescription drugs.