Medicine coverage initiative on ballot

Published 5:00 am Friday, August 4, 2006

Buying prescription drugs could get a little easier for Oregon residents without drug coverage if a ballot measure passes this fall.

The initiative, which will be on the ballot in November but has not yet been assigned an official number, would extend the Oregon Prescription Drug Program to all Oregonians without other drug coverage. It is sponsored by a coalition of advocacy organizations, including AARP Oregon and Oregonians for Health Security.

The Oregon Prescription Drug Program, which began in March 2005, currently applies only to Oregonians over the age of 54 who make less than 185 percent of the federal poverty level – about $18,130 a year for an individual – and who have been without drug coverage for at least six months. It is a separate program from the Oregon Health Plan.

Some public-sector groups, including school districts, can also join the program, which creates a larger purchasing pool, explained Missy Dolan, administrator of the program for the Oregon Department of Human Services. Dolan negotiates directly with pharmacies for discounted prescription drug prices.

”Our average discounts result in about $26 per prescription for our uninsured population,” she said. ”The uninsured have saved $560,000 between March 1, 2005, and June 30, 2006.”

But because only about 30,000 Oregonians meet the eligibility requirements, and only about 3,700 of them have signed up so far, Dolan said, the savings have been limited to a small number of people.

Many of the eligible residents also qualify for the Medicare prescription drug program known as Part D and use that instead.

All members receive a card to use for discounts at the pharmacy. They are encouraged to buy generic drugs, which helps reduce the costs, and there is no fee to enroll.

Its only about 5 percent of our uninsured population, Dolan said. It is still a worthy cause, but it has kept us from getting at least one sizable grant from a foundation because our reach was so small.

The voter initiative, if passed, could help 780,000 Oregonians receive up to 60 percent discounts on their drug costs, according to its sponsors.

We have a history of surveys, for the past few years, that we do of our members periodically. We ask, What are your concerns? What are your priorities? said Sara Wurfel of AARP Oregon. The two things that rise to the top are health care costs overall and prescription drug costs.

By sending the initiative petition to its members, the organization collected more than 30,000 signatures. Wurfel said that response alone shows AARP that prescription drug costs are an important issue.

Jim Thompson, executive director of the Oregon State Pharmacy Association, is concerned about the measure. Originally, he said, the association entered into a contract with the Oregon Prescription Drug Program to limit pharmacy dispensing fees on those prescriptions to $2.50 each. The national average for dispensing fees, which pharmacists use to cover their overhead costs, is closer to $10 per prescription.

Now they want to extend that plan to virtually everybody in the state of Oregon. We wont want to take a hit on all those dispensing fees, Thompson said. There is nothing in the measure, the way it is written, that would change that.

Wurfel said the Oregon Prescription Drug Program was originally funded for its administrative costs by the 2003 state Legislature. Because employees like Dolan negotiate discounts for members directly with pharmacies and members pay for their drugs, Wurfel said, adding more members will not cost taxpayers additional money.

Thompson said he is skeptical of that claim, but he also sees the costs of the program coming back to pharmacists.

I dont think thats right, hitting the pharmacists with the price of administering the program, he said.

If the measure passes and reduces drug costs without additional government funding, Lynn Martin of Ochoco Health Systems, which operates three federally qualified health centers in Central Oregon, said she thinks it would be helpful.

Prescription drug coverage is one of our most significant challenges because patients can come to the provider, they can be examined, they can be seen, but if they need medication and they cant afford their medication, everything the physician can do goes for naught, Martin said. If it can be done, its fabulous. We would have many people who would participate.

As a voter initiative, the measure received more than 116,000 signatures, 83,000 of which have been verified by the Oregon Secretary of States office.

For more information on the Oregon Prescription Drug Program, call 888-411-6737.

Kayley Mendenhall can

be reached at 383-0375 or at kmendenhall@bendbulletin.com.

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