Multiple pharmacy use and types of pharmacies used to obtain prescriptions

To evaluate trends and patterns in the prevalence of multiple pharmacy use (MPU) and to describe the number and types of pharmacies used by multiple pharmacy users from 2003 to 2009.

Retrospective, cross-sectional, descriptive study.

United States from 2003 to 2009.

89,941 responses to the Medical Expenditure Panel Survey over 7 years.

Analysis of respondent pharmacy use behaviors.

Annual use of more than one pharmacy and number and types of pharmacies used.

MPU among patients using medications increased significantly during the study period (from 36.4% [95% CI 35.2-37.6] in 2003 to 43.2% [41.9-44.4] in 2009)-a relative increase of 18.7% ( P = 0.01). Multiple pharmacy users used between 2 and 17 different pharmacies per year to obtain prescription medications. Although approximately 70% of multiple pharmacy users used only two pharmacies, the proportion using three or more pharmacies increased from 24.1% (22.5-25.7) in 2003 to 29.1% (27.4-30.8) in 2009. Mail service pharmacy use had the largest relative increase among multiple pharmacy users during the study period (27.2%), and MPU was nearly twice as high (75%) among mail service users compared with non-mail service users.

MPU is common on a national level and has increased greatly in recent years. Patient use of pharmacies that have the potential to share medication information electronically is low among multiple pharmacy users, suggesting increased workload for pharmacists and potential medication safety concerns. This has important implications for pharmacists, as it potentially impedes their ability to maintain accurate medication profiles for patients.