PRINCE FREDERICK, Md. –– The National Association of Counties (NACo), in partnership with CVS Caremark, recently presented the fifth annual Outstanding Performance Award to Calvert County Government for its handling of the NACo prescription discount card program.
The award recognizes counties that have increased participation in the program. The criteria considered population and increases in the number of prescription claims. To be eligible, Calvert County – population 90,000 – needed to have an increase of 1,000 claims in a year. The county recorded 1,223 new claims from June 2010 to May 2011.
The prescription program helps consumers save money on prescription medications when prescriptions are not covered by their insurance. NACo acts as a broker between drug companies and pharmacies to provide the card, and the savings that NACo negotiates can be passed to Calvert County residents.
For those who have insurance, the card can cover prescriptions that might not be covered, like experimental or new drugs that have not yet been approved by the insurance company. The discount can also be helpful for residents on Medicare Part D. That plan covers prescription costs up to $3,000; coverage then stops until the beneficiary’s costs have gotten to $6,000. The discount helps with the cost of the medicines purchased in between. One unique benefit of the cards is that it can cover pet medications when there is a human equivalent.
Calvert County began offering the NACo prescription discount program in 2009. Since then, residents have filled nearly 12,000 prescriptions and have received discounts that average more than 27 percent. The savings have added up to more than $196,000.
The NACo website for the program, http://www.nacorx.org, has been recently updated and now includes information on local pharmacies and drug pricing, as well as tools to make the process of obtaining a card easier. The new site offers information on drug interactions and provides information on specific drugs.
There is no cost to county taxpayers for NACo and Calvert County to make these money-saving cards available to residents. Cards are available at all Calvert County libraries, senior centers, the Health Department and the Calvert County Department of Community Resources, located at 30 Duke Street in Prince Frederick. County residents can call toll free 1-877-321-2652 or visit http://www.nacorx.org for assistance with the program.
Source: Calvert Co. Government