DUBLIN, Ohio, Sept. 17, 2015 /PRNewswire/ -- In
preparation for the open enrollment period, which starts in
mid-October and runs through Dec. 7, Cardinal Health is
offering its retail pharmacy customers eHealth's Medicare plan
comparison tool, as well as the iMedicare platform to help their
patients more easily compare Medicare Part D prescription drug
plans.
The iMedicare platform integrates with every pharmacy system, so
pharmacies can identify patients eligible to choose a Medicare plan
and generate a customized report within seconds. iMedicare includes
medications a patient may fill at another pharmacy, too. The
iMedicare platform is offered at a discounted price for Cardinal
Health Pharmacy Services Administrative Organization (PSAO)
members.
eHealth's Medicare plan comparison tool is available at no
cost and allows busy pharmacists to quickly and easily
help their patients find the lowest cost Medicare prescription
drug coverage plan to meet their specific prescription drug needs.
In a fraction of the time required by other methods, the tool
creates a custom plan comparison report, specific to the data
entered for each patient, which shows the user health plan
options that will save the most money for the patient. The
tool also notifies the user if generic medications are available to
further reduce healthcare costs for the patient. The information is
formatted to be easily printed and shared with the patient, so they
can enroll themselves, online, or contact one of eHealth's licensed
agents and enroll in a new plan over the phone.
"With approximately 10,000 patients aging into Medicare each
day, community pharmacists are ideally suited to help beneficiaries
understand their Medicare prescription drug plan options and select
the one that best meets their needs," said Elie Bahou, Pharm.D., vice president of Managed
Care and Business Development at Cardinal Health. "We're excited to
offer our retail pharmacy customers the option to choose
the right drug plan comparison tool for their needs, and
offer outstanding technology and marketing tools to make it
easier than ever to discuss drug plan options with their
patients."
In support of the prescription drug plan comparison tools,
Cardinal Health is providing participating retail pharmacies access
to a comprehensive marketing toolkit, which includes customized
printed materials and electronic marketing materials to help raise
awareness of the tool among their patients.
"Marketing for the eHealth Medicare Prescription Drug Plan
Comparison Tool specifically brought in new families to our
pharmacy," said Theresa Tolle, owner
and chief pharmacist at Bay Street Pharmacy in Sebastian, Florida. "It's important to
identify targeted opportunities for this service...to do a little
research to identify what outlets most of your community is paying
attention to, and use these great marketing materials to ensure
they know you're a resource to help them better understand their
Medicare options."
Cardinal Health provides a comprehensive suite of Managed Care
services to thousands of independent and regional pharmacies –
negotiating contracts on their behalf with health insurance plans
and pharmacy benefits managers to help them increase prescription
volume and gain access to new patients.
In 2016, the company's PSAO will participate in 13 Part D
preferred pharmacy plans that provide additional savings
opportunities for Medicare beneficiaries, including the following
national Medicare Part D carriers:
- Cigna
- Aetna
- Coventry
- Express Scripts
- Caremark
- SilverScript
- United American
- Magellan
- Prime Therapeutics
- Blue Cross Blue Shield – Arkansas, Alabama, North
Carolina, New Jersey,
South Carolina and Tennessee
Learn more about Cardinal Health's Managed Care services.
About Cardinal Health
Headquartered in
Dublin,
Ohio, Cardinal Health, Inc. (NYSE: CAH)
is a $103 billion
health care services company that improves the
cost-effectiveness of health care. Cardinal Health helps
pharmacies, hospitals, ambulatory surgery
centers, clinical laboratories and physician offices
focus on patient care while reducing costs, enhancing efficiency
and improving quality. Cardinal Health is an essential link in the
health care supply chain, providing pharmaceuticals
and medical products and services to more than 100,000
locations each day and is also the industry-leading direct-to-home
medical supplies distributor. The company is a leading manufacturer
of medical and surgical products, including gloves, surgical
apparel and fluid management products. In addition, the company
operates the nation's largest network of
radiopharmacies that dispense products to aid in the early
diagnosis and treatment of disease. Ranked #26 on the Fortune 500,
Cardinal Health employs nearly 35,000 people
worldwide. More information about the company may be found at
www.cardinalhealth.com and @CardinalHealth on
Twitter.
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SOURCE Cardinal Health, Inc.