Drug card saving residents money

Friday, March 20, 2009
Bourbon County residents who are under insured or not insured at all can get discounts on some of their prescription medications through the Bourbon County Drug Discount Card Program offered through the National Association of Counties. Since August, more than $8,500 worth of savings have been generated in Bourbon County through the program. (Rayma Silvers/Tribune photo)

Since its implementation in August, the Bourbon County Prescription Drug Discount Card Program has generated thousands of dollars worth of savings in the local area on prescription medications.

The discount drug program, which is being offered to county residents free of charge, is sponsored by the National Association of Counties. According to former Bourbon County Commissioner Bill Brittain, the discount program is not the same as insurance. The drug cards provide immediate discounts on prescription medications for county residents.

The discount drug cards may be used by all county residents, regardless of age, income or existing health coverage. However, the prescription discount cards can only be used at participating pharmacies. Wal-Mart Pharmacy, Woods Pharmacy, Mercy Pharmacy and Walgreens Pharmacy are currently participating in the discount program, Brittain said.

According to the National Association of Counties Web site, www.naco.org, 95 area residents received discounts on more than 200 prescription refills in February, resulting in a savings of nearly $1,400 county-wide. Since the discount program's inception in August, the drug card has provided, on average, more than an 18 percent discount per refill on prescription medications, according to the NACo Web site. With more than 1,000 prescriptions being presented for discount consideration in Bourbon County since August, the savings in the local area to date has been slightly more than $8,500.

According to Beth Arnold, pharmacy manager at Woods Pharmacy, the free county-wide prescription drug program has helped many of the customers at Woods Pharmacy.

"I think it is helpful especially for people who don't have any other type of insurance," Arnold said. "Every little bit helps. We probably have about five to 10 percent of our customers who use the card."

Arnold said county residents who are signed up for the free program can choose to use either their private health insurance on a specific prescription, or they can use the discount card. However, they cannot receive a discount from both their regular insurance plan and the discount program.

"Sometimes we have customers whose primary insurance card does not cover a medication," Arnold said. "They use the prescription card, and it helps."

There are 36 counties in Kansas who are working with NACo to offer the discount drug program to their residents. More than 100,000 people in Kansas have benefited from the program with a total state-wide savings of more than $2,000,000, the NACo Web site said.