Drug plan aids the uninsured

Kerr stores in Carolinas join program to cut costs of more than 300 drugs

Pharmacists at the 102 Kerr Drug stores in North and South Carolina are touting a program to help uninsured customers save on certain brand-name prescription drugs.

Called Together Rx Access, the free program can help cut the cost of more than 300 drugs by 25 percent to 40 percent, on average.

A partnership among 10 drug companies, Together Rx Access has been available for two years. But the hope is that the new partnership with Kerr will jump start awareness of the program in North Carolina, where there are 1.3 million uninsured residents.

"The pharmacists and technicians on the front line are running into more and more people who could benefit from this program," said Mark Gregory, Kerr's vice president of pharmacy and government relations. "We want to make sure people get their medications."

Together Rx Access covers many popular drugs, including Allegra D, Celebrex, Lipitor, Paxil, Prilosec, Viagra and Zantac.

To qualify, customers must be citizens of the United States or Puerto Rico. They cannot be eligible for Medicare and must not have any other form of public or private prescription drug coverage.

There are also income limits. For single people, income cannot exceed $30,000 annually. For families, the limit is $60,000 for a family of four or $70,000 for a family of five.

Customers at Kerr stores can pick up a temporary card in the store, activate it by phone and use it immediately to save.

But, the card can be used in any number of pharmacies, including Wal-Mart, CVS, Walgreens and Eckerd, said Amy Niles, spokeswoman for Together Rx Access.

Though Kerr doesn't benefit directly from the partnership, Gregory said he hopes the availability of the cards in stores will help build customer loyalty.

"If we say we have it available, hopefully customers will look to Kerr Drug as a destination for the uninsured," he said. "But there's no hidden agenda. This is good for customers. We can't discount the prices of the drugs to that point ourselves. It's below the cost we actually purchase the drugs at."

Together Rx Access was created to follow Together Rx, a similar program that offered prescription discounts to seniors. That program was ended on Dec. 31, 2005, with the introduction of Medicare Part D, Niles said.

There are also other options for customers who need help paying for drugs, Niles said. Several pharmaceutical companies have their own discount programs, and the Partnership for Prescription Assistance is a network of nearly 500 such programs, including Together Rx Access.

"We are their largest private-sector program," she said. "There's great synergy between all the programs."