Beginning this month, millions of people enrolled in Medicare will have access to savings on more than 150 widely prescribed medicines through one free, easy-to-use card now offered by seven major pharmaceutical companies - the Together Rx™ Card.

Through the Together Rx Card, Medicare enrollees without public or private prescription drug coverage and with incomes of up to $28,000 ($38,000 for couples) can anticipate obtaining savings ranging from approximately 20 to 40 percent and, in some cases, more, off the price they usually pay for prescription medicines at the pharmacy.

The companies offering the card are Abbott Laboratories, AstraZeneca, Aventis Pharmaceuticals, Bristol-Myers Squibb Company, GlaxoSmithKline, Johnson & Johnson, and Novartis Pharmaceuticals Corporation. Together, they offer savings on more than 150 prescription medicines, including 26 different medicines used to treat diabetes, hypertension, high cholesterol, cancer, allergy, asthma, arthritis, and depression, which are among the most common conditions affecting older Americans.

Pharmacies across the country, including Wal-Mart, Rite Aid, Walgreens, Target, Albertson's, Costco, Kroger, and Safeway, have shown strong support for the Together Rx card. In addition to accepting the card at their stores, participating pharmacies have made the commitment to pass through direct to the patient 100% of the savings being offered by the pharmaceutical companies.

You can get enrollment materials through participating pharmacies, physicians' offices and community centers, or on the program's Web site at www.Together-Rx.com.

In addition many drug companies offer patient assistance programs for people on limited incomes. Administrators of the Together Rx program will seek to identify these individuals and offer them further reductions in the cost of many medications. More than half of the top 200 medications prescribed in 1999 were offered through these assistance programs to indigent patients. Your doctor’s office can help you obtain these drugs by completing enrollment materials available from the pharmaceutical company.

Related information Treatment - Oral medications

Sources:

• Together Rx. New pharmaceutical alliance offers savings to limited income seniors on more than 150 medicines through one free card. Press Release, April 10, 2002.
• Chisholm MA, DiPiro JT. Pharmaceutical manufacturer assistance programs. Archives of Internal Medicine. April 8, 2002;162:780-784. (Abs.)