Pharmacy students teaching prescribers strategies to lower prescription drug costs for underserved patients.

BACKGROUND: The rising costs of health care and, in particular, prescription drugs remains a challenge. Health professionals' ability to promote cost-effective prescription drug use is critical, yet this subject is not included consistently in the curriculum of most health professional schools. As experts in prescription drug selection, use, and cost, pharmacists are in a unique position to help manage prescription drug regimens for the best therapeutic outcome, while also helping to keep patients' out-of-pocket (OOP) prescription drug costs low. In addition to promoting interprofessional collaboration, pharmacy student-led lectures may provide an effective means to teach prescription drug cost-savings strategies to other health professional students and current prescribers. OBJECTIVE: To describe and evaluate the impact of a 60- to 90-minute standardized, case-based lecture on prescribers' attitudes and knowledge about drug cost-containment strategies. METHODS: Four trained pharmacy students delivered a lecture that focused on strategies to help underserved patients with their OOP prescription drug costs. This lecture was given to health professional students and prescribers across disciplines. For purposes of this study, underserved patients included those with no drug insurance, those with limited financial resources who were unable to pay for their prescription drugs, and those whose drug insurance had significant gaps in coverage (e.g., Medicare Part D patients). Lectures targeted future and current prescribers and were delivered in multiple settings (e.g., residents' seminars, medical grand rounds, required health policy courses for medical and nursing students). Pretest/posttest surveys were administered to assess the impact of the lecture on learners' (a) knowledge of strategies to improve underserved patients' access to needed prescription drugs; (b) willingness to address and discuss cost issues with patients; (c) likelihood of collaborating with other health care professionals; and (d) perception of pharmacists as patient advocates. The survey collected demographic information about learners and assessed their knowledge through 5 case-based, multiple-choice questions. The survey also asked learners to rate their agreement with 5 statements using a 4-point Likert rating scale (4 = strongly agree to 1 = strongly disagree). To control for potential test-retest bias for the case-based knowledge questions, an alternate version of the pretest/posttest survey was developed without the pretest knowledge questions included. Learners received either 1 of the 2 surveys randomly before the lecture began and were instructed to complete the pretest portion of the survey before the start of the lecture and to complete the posttest portion of the survey at the conclusion of the lecture. RESULTS: From October 2010 to June 2012, trained pharmacy students delivered 19 presentations to 626 learners from other health professions. Compared with the baseline, there was a statistically significant increase in the proportion of correct answers for each knowledge-based question after delivery of the lecture (overall significance P less than 0.001). Furthermore, there was a significant increase in the proportion of learners responding that they were more confident in their ability to select prescription drug cost-saving strategies; more likely to consult with other providers to lower OOP prescription drug costs; more likely to consider costs when making prescribing decisions; and more likely to ask their patients about prescription drug affordability (overall significance of P less than 0.05). In addition, after the lecture, more learners felt that pharmacists were patient advocates. Finally, 96% of learners felt that the lecture promoted interprofessional collaboration and would recommend it to other health care professionals. CONCLUSIONS: This study demonstrates that a single lecture given by pharmacy students to other health care professional students and current prescribers can improve knowledge of prescription drug cost-saving strategies targeted toward vulnerable patient populations and may increase the likelihood of collaboration between prescribers and pharmacists. The format of this lecture is an efficient and effective way to disseminate important and timely policy information to health care professionals.

Promoting interprofessional collaboration: pharmacy students teaching current and future prescribers about Medicare Part D.

BACKGROUND: Nearly all health professional students and prescribers, regardless of specialty, will care for older adults who are enrolled in or eligible for the Medicare Part D prescription drug benefit. Given the growing numbers of older adults, the increased burden of chronic disease, and the escalating costs of health care, health professional students and prescribers across disciplines should learn strategies to promote cost-effective prescribing and collaborate with pharmacists who are experts in medication use and costs. OBJECTIVE: To describe and evaluate the impact of a statewide peer education program in which selected students at 7 California schools of pharmacy delivered a clinically relevant lecture on Part D to a multidisciplinary audience of health professional students and prescribers. METHODS: Trained pharmacy students delivered a case-based lecture on Medicare Part D to other health professional students and prescribers throughout the state of California. An 11-item survey designed to evaluate (a) self-assessed Part D knowledge, (b) opinion of pharmacists' roles on the health care team, (c) intent to collaborate with pharmacists, and (d) awareness of cost-savings strategies to reduce patients' out-of-pocket drug costs was administered before and after the lecture. Pre-lecture versus post-lecture results were tested for statistical significance using the Wilcoxon signed-rank test with Bonferroni adjustment of alpha to 0.004 because of multiple comparisons. RESULTS: From October 2008 through May 2010, trained students from 7 pharmacy schools gave 58 presentations to a total of 1,490 current or future prescribers, including 304 nurse practitioner students and 279 resident physicians. At baseline pre-lecture, self-rated knowledge of Medicare Part D was generally poor; only 4.9% of respondents strongly agreed that "I understand the Medicare Part D benefit," and 6.6% strongly agreed that they could "identify key Medicare Part D resources to help my patients." Nine of 11 survey items showed statistically significant improvement (P less than 0.001), including all 4 items in the Part D knowledge domain and all 5 items in the intent-to-collaborate domain (e.g., "I consult with pharmacists and/or pharmacy students about drug costs"). Outcomes were similar across the 7 schools. CONCLUSION: At pre-lecture baseline, self-reported deficits in knowledge about Part D policy and drug cost-savings resources and strategies existed among medical, nursing and physician assistant students, resident physicians, and other health professionals. A pharmacy student-led peer education lecture can be used to bridge this gap, resulting in timely dissemination of geriatrics health policy information and increased awareness of pharmacists' roles and expertise in pharmaceutical health policy and patient care.

Promoting access and reducing expected out-of-pocket prescription drug costs for vulnerable Medicare beneficiaries: a pharmacist-directed model.

BACKGROUND: The Medicare Part D benefit is complicated and may be costly, especially for vulnerable low-income populations where lack of resources and limited English proficiency may be barriers to optimal plan selection. OBJECTIVES: To identify vulnerable Medicare beneficiaries and lower their expected annual out-of-pocket (OOP) prescription drug costs through one-on-one prescription drug plan counseling by pharmacists and trained pharmacy students. RESEARCH DESIGN: Between October 2008 and January 2010, a cross-sectional study was performed throughout California. Using Medicare's Prescription Drug Plan Finder tool, expected annual OOP costs for each beneficiary's current prescription drug plan were compared with the lowest-cost plan. SUBJECTS: The study sample included vulnerable Medicare beneficiaries with annual incomes ≤300% of the Federal Poverty Level. RESULTS: There were 1300 vulnerable beneficiaries who received counseling at 94 outreach events. Only 29% of beneficiaries with a stand-alone Part D prescription drug plan were enrolled in the lowest-cost plan. On the basis of counseling recommendations, 390 beneficiaries changed to the lowest-cost Part D plan on site, reducing their expected OOP costs by 68%. Additionally, 72 beneficiaries were identified as eligible for but not receiving low-income subsidy benefits and 55 received assistance with the online application for the subsidy. CONCLUSIONS: Findings show that targeted outreach by trained pharmacy advocates can identify vulnerable Medicare populations in need of Part D counseling and reduce their expected annual OOP prescription drug costs.

Peer-to-peer interprofessional health policy education for Medicare part D.

OBJECTIVES: To determine whether a peer-to-peer education program was an expedient and effective approach to improve knowledge and promote interprofessional communication and collaboration. DESIGN: Trained pharmacy students taught nursing students, medical students, and medical residents about the Medicare Part D prescription drug benefit (Part D), in 1- to 2-hour lectures. ASSESSMENT: Learners completed a survey instrument to assess the effectiveness of the presentation and their attitudes toward the peer-to-peer instructional format. Learners strongly or somewhat agreed that the peer-to-peer format was effective in providing Part D education (99%) and promoted interprofessional collaboration (100%). Qualitative data highlighted the program's clinical relevance, value in promoting interprofessional collaboration, and influence on changing views about the roles and contributions of pharmacists. CONCLUSION: The Part D peer educator program is an innovative way to disseminate contemporary health policy information rapidly, while fostering interprofessional collaboration.

A population study of the frequency of high-dose acetaminophen prescribing and dispensing.

BACKGROUND: Recurrent intake of 4 g/day or more of acetaminophen has been associated with elevation of serum alanine aminotransferase (ALT) levels in 30-40% of the exposed population and may result in hepatotoxicity. OBJECTIVE: To describe the frequency that patients are prescribed acetaminophen doses that exceed 4 g/day across a large population. METHODS: Using California's Medicaid (Medi-Cal) fee-for-service population, pharmacy claims including over-the-counter (OTC) medications were examined for prescriptions that could result in acetaminophen doses of 4 g/day or more. The period studied, October 2004 through September 2005, was before the Part D pharmacy benefit was available to dually eligible Medicare patients when all prescriptions were covered by the Medi-Cal claims process. RESULTS: During the pre-Part D evaluation period, approximately 3.27 million beneficiaries were enrolled in the fee-for-service Medi-Cal program. A total of 192,716 (5.9%) were potentially exposed to at least 1 day of 4 g/day or more of acetaminophen. Of those, 769 patients were potentially exposed to at least 1 day of 16 g/day or more. A total of 2664 beneficiaries were dispensed prescriptions and OTC products that, if taken as directed, would have resulted in more than 100 days of acetaminophen doses of 4 g/day or more during the study year. CONCLUSIONS: Despite electronic systems designed to warn dispensing pharmacists of duplications of drug class and cumulative excessive doses, potentially toxic amounts of acetaminophen are commonly prescribed and dispensed to this population. Better systems, increased awareness, and education of patients, prescribers, and pharmacists are needed to reduce this potential toxic exposure.

Cost minimization of medicare part D prescription drug plan expenditures.

OBJECTIVE: To minimize out-of-pocket prescription drug plan (PDP) expenditures by Medicare beneficiaries. STUDY DESIGN: Cost-minimization analysis. METHODS: Trained student pharmacists from 6 California pharmacy schools provided expert guidance on Medicare Part D PDPs to beneficiaries through interventions at statewide outreach events. Demographic and insurance information for 2008 was collected via survey. Cost information for the beneficiary's current PDP for 2008 and for the least expensive PDP for 2008 was obtained using the Medicare Plan Finder tool (http://www.medicare.gov). RESULTS: Data were collected from 250 beneficiaries at 22 outreach events. For the cost-minimization analysis, data were excluded from 72 beneficiaries who were not enrolled in a stand-alone PDP before the intervention and from another 23 beneficiaries for whom information regarding their current PDP or prescription drug profile was incomplete. Of the remaining 155 study participants, 39.4% were male, the mean (SD) age was 74.6 (8.7) years, and they were taking a mean (SD) of 5.3 (3.5) prescription drugs each month. In addition, 68 beneficiaries (43.9%) had limited or no English proficiency, and 85 beneficiaries (54.8%) were enrolled in both Medicare and Medicaid. In total, 89.7% of beneficiaries could have realized cost savings by switching to a different PDP. The median annual potential cost savings was $98 per beneficiary but this varied as a function of subsidy level. CONCLUSION: Targeted community outreach services to Medicare Part D beneficiaries can help optimize patient selection of a PDP, thereby resulting in lower out-of-pocket expenditures.

Medicare part D community outreach train-the-trainer program for pharmacy faculty.

OBJECTIVES: To assess the train-the-trainer component of an initiative (Partners in D) to train pharmacy students to facilitate patient enrollment in the best Medicare Part D prescription drug plan (Part D). METHODS: Faculty members from 6 California colleges or schools of pharmacy were taught how to train pharmacy students about Medicare Part D and how to conduct outreach events targeting underserved patient populations. A preintervention and postintervention survey instrument was administered to determine participants' (1) knowledge of the Part D program; (2) skill using the Medicare Prescription Drug Plan Finder tool; and (3) confidence in their ability to train pharmacy students. Implementation of the Partners in D curriculum in faculty members' colleges or schools of pharmacy was also determined. RESULTS: Participants' knowledge of Part D, mastery of the Plan Finder, and confidence in teaching the material to pharmacy students all significantly improved. Within 8 weeks following the program, 5 of 6 colleges or schools of pharmacy adopted Partners in D coursework and initiated teaching the Partners-in-D curriculum. Four months afterwards, 21 outreach events reaching 186 Medicare beneficiaries had been completed. CONCLUSIONS: The train-the-trainer component of the Partners in D program is practical and effective, and merits serious consideration as a national model for educating patients about Medicare Part D.

Problem-based learning using the online Medicare Part D Plan Finder tool.

OBJECTIVES: To implement didactic and problem-based learning curricular innovations aimed at increasing students' knowledge of Medicare Part D, improving their ability to apply the online Medicare Prescription Drug Plan Finder tool to a patient case, and improving their attitudes toward patient advocacy for Medicare beneficiaries. METHODS: A survey instrument and a case-based online Medicare Prescription Drug Plan Finder tool exercise were administered to a single group (n = 120) of second-year pharmacy graduate students prior to and following completion of a course on health policy. Three domains (knowledge, skill mastery and attitudes) were measured before and after two 90-minute lectures on Medicare Part D. RESULTS: The online Medicare Prescription Drug Plan Finder exercise and Medicare Part D didactic lectures had positive effects on students' knowledge of Part D, attitudes toward patient advocacy, and ability to accurately use the Medicare Prescription Drug Plan Finder tool. CONCLUSIONS: The success of these didactic and problem-based curricular innovations in improving pharmacy students' knowledge, skills, and attitudes regarding Part D warrants further evaluation to determine their portability to clinical settings and other pharmacy schools.

Managing the unmanageable: the nature and impact of drug risk in physician groups.

As drug costs rose in the 1990s, health maintenance organizations (HMOs) began transferring risk for prescription drug expenditures to physician groups. With principal-agent theory as a framework for understanding drug-risk transfer, we used a multiple case-study design to examine the relationship between the level of drug risk that a physician group accepts and the physician group's adoption of drug-use management strategies. The data demonstrated that adoption of drug-use management innovations was not related to level of risk for pharmacy costs and that factors other than drug-risk level (e.g., contracting and data issues, financial and market factors, and physician group assessments of the fairness and incentives of risk contracts) can influence the principal-agent relationship. The data also revealed a novel form of information asymmetry between physicians and HMOs and unexpected failures of HMOs to fully enable their physician-agents. We believe these observations reflect the complexity of relationships in the health care system and have implications for the use of incentives. Based on principal-agent theory and our findings, we offer an alternative approach to drug-risk contracting that reduces physicians responsibility for aspects of drug use that are beyond their control while maintaining the incentives to manage drug costs and use that were the original intent of drug-risk contracting.

The PRICE clinic for low-income elderly: a managed care model for implementing pharmacist-directed services.

OBJECTIVES: The Medicare Modernization Act of 2003 calls for medication therapy management programs (MTMPs) to control anticipated growth in drug use and expenditures. In 2006, prescription drug plan sponsors, including health plans, pharmacy benefit managers, and other entities, will be required to offer MTMP services performed by pharmacists or other health professionals. The Pharmacist Review to Increase Cost Effectiveness (PRICE) Clinic in Sacramento, California, is a pharmacist-directed, multidisciplinary model that is adaptable to providing MTMP services in a managed care setting. The PRICE Clinic serves a 3-fold mission: (1) to help low-income elderly patients decrease out-of-pocket (OOP) drug expenses; (2) to ensure that patients receive clinically appropriate, cost-effective drug regimens; and (3) to improve access to needed medications. The objectives of this study were to characterize and document the number and type of PRICE clinic interventions; measure changes in generic drug use; document savings in OOP drug costs; and measure patient access to drugs that had been, or would have been, discontinued because of cost. METHODS: A noncontrolled retrospective PRICE Clinic database review was conducted for the 520 patients seen in the PRICE Clinic in calendar year 2002. Study participants were low-income elderly with multiple chronic diseases, multiple medications, and high drug costs. For each patient, researchers documented the number and type of interventions performed by pharmacists and the drug class involved in each intervention. Changes in generic drug use and OOP costs were assessed by a preanalysis and postanalysis of selected outcome variables and a comparison of results with comparable patient populations in large state and national databases. Self-report was used to examine whether patients had discontinued medications because of cost, and the PRICE Clinic database analysis examined whether interventions enabled patients to resume previously discontinued medications. RESULTS: PRICE clinic conducted 1,297 interventions among the 520 study patients in 2002, an average of 2.5 interventions per patient. The most common drug classes involved in interventions were lipid-lowering drugs, angiotensin-converting enzyme inhibitors, and asthma and allergy drugs. Generic drug use increased from 51% before PRICE clinic interventions to 56% afterward, a relative increase of 9.8% and more than 30% higher relative to the benchmark value. OOP medication expenditures decreased 68%, from dollar 185 to dollar 60 per patient per month, or dollar 1,500 per patient per year. A total of 215 patients (41%) reported that they had or would soon discontinue drugs because of cost; 186 (87%) of these patients were able to continue or resume the drug as the result of PRICE Clinic interventions. The most common interventions were pharmaceutical industry-sponsored patient assistance programs, generic substitution, and therapeutic interchange. CONCLUSION: Results from this pilot study indicate the benefits of providing pharmacist-directed services to the population targeted by MTMP services, which encompasses Medicare beneficiaries with multiple chronic diseases, multiple drugs, and high drug costs. By providing pharmacist consultation at the point of care to ensure appropriate drug use, decrease OOP expenditures, and improve access to needed drugs, the PRICE Clinic is a possible model for further development in the implementation of MTMP services.

Financial risk relationships and adoption of management strategies in physician groups for self-administered injectable drugs.

OBJECTIVE: To consider the extent, nature, and range of risk arrangements between physician groups and health maintenance organizations (HMOs) for self-administered injectable (SAI) drugs; to examine types and frequencies of SAI drug-use management strategies adopted by physician groups; and to explore the relationship between locus and level of financial risk for SAIs and physician group strategy adoption. METHODS: We used a multiple case-study design to select physician groups and their health maintenance organization (HMO) contractual partners in 4 markets in the United States (Northwest, Northeast, Midwest, Southwest). Physician groups in these markets were chosen based on size (e50 physicians) and experience with drug risk (e1 year). Physician groups were asked to identify their 3 major HMO contractual partners in each market. Telephone interviews were conducted from January 2000 to June 2001, with the resulting purposive sample of 37 individuals representing 20 physician groups. RESULTS: We found that the level and locus of SAI financial risk were related to the adoption of management strategies. Physician groups with higher financial risk for SAIs adopted more strategies than lower-risk groups. Groups with SAI financial risk in the medical services capitation (MSC) adopted 9.2 strategies per group. In contrast, groups with SAI financial risk in the pharmacy-risk budget (PRB) averaged 1.5 strategies per group. Groups with SAI financial risk in both the MSC and PRB fell in-between, averaging 4.5 strategies per group. The most frequently adopted strategy was designing evidenced-based therapeutic guidelines, i.e., protocols based on evidence from the peer-reviewed literature used to guide physicians in the treatment of typically chronic conditions (9 groups, 45% of sample). The second most common strategy involved adapting the existing utilization management system to process SAIs (7 groups, 35%) and the establishment of office procedures for internal authorization (5 groups, 25%). The least frequently used strategies were determining amount paid to out-of-group physician providers (1 group, 5%) and hiring personnel (e.g., pharmacists) in claims or utilization management departments to implement and manage SAI programs (1 group, 5%). We also identified potential factors that increased the likelihood of strategy adoption and that could slow the rate of SAI cost increases. CONCLUSION: Our findings suggest that adoption of SAI drug-use management strategies may be more likely to occur when there is a minimum level of risk for SAI drug costs. Likewise, both the adoption of strategies and the opportunity to slow the rate of SAI cost increases may be more likely to occur when 3 additional factors are present: a contractual environment conducive to controlling SAI drug costs, the ability to implement SAI drug-use management strategies, and power in negotiations with drug manufacturers to reduce SAI prices. A sustainable and affordable SAI financial risk management program maximizing these factors while minimizing the financial burden for patients will require collaboration among all stakeholders, payers, providers, drug manufacturers, and patients.

Pharmacy-based intervention to reduce antibiotic use for acute bronchitis.

BACKGROUND: Intervention programs can reduce inappropriate antibiotic use for the treatment of acute bronchitis in a closed health maintenance organization model. OBJECTIVE: To evaluate the impact of a pharmacy-based intervention program intended to reduce antibiotic use in the treatment of acute bronchitis in a community-based physician group model. SUBJECTS: Adult and pediatric patients with an office or urgent care visit for acute bronchitis during the baseline and study periods were included in the study. The clinicians were primary care physicians, nurse practitioners, and physician assistants in a suburban community-based physician group setting. METHODS: All patients treated for acute bronchitis from January 1 through June 30, 1998, were evaluated for initial receipt of antibiotics and use of clinic resources (office visits, additional antibiotics). From September through December of 1998, physicians were provided literature from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), cough and cold package inserts, and newsletters intended to educate the providers regarding the inappropriateness of antibiotics in the treatment of acute bronchitis. Patient-directed literature from the CDC was placed in the examination rooms and clinic waiting areas beginning September 1998. From January 1 through June 30, 1999, all patients treated for acute bronchitis were assessed for receipt of antibiotics and use of clinic resources. A separate geographic clinic site served as a control during both study periods. RESULTS: During 1998, 888 of 1840 patients (48.3%) received antibiotics for treatment of acute bronchitis; this total decreased to 924 of 2392 (38.6%; p < or = 0.001) in 1999, a reduction of 20%. The rate of antibiotic prescribing in control patients was unchanged during the concomitant time periods (142/446, 31.8% vs. 102/321, 31.8%). The rate of subsequent physician visits was similar (8% vs. 9%) between patients receiving antibiotics and those who did not. However, significantly more patients initially receiving antibiotics required a subsequent antibiotic prescription (45/1812, 2.5% vs. 24/2420, 1.0%; p < or = 0.001). CONCLUSIONS: A pharmacy-based intervention program reduces the incidence of inappropriate antibiotic use in the treatment of acute bronchitis. Reduced antibiotic prescribing does not increase consumption of healthcare resources; patients who receive antibiotics for acute bronchitis are more likely to subsequently require additional antibiotic prescriptions. While a significant decrease in antibiotic use was realized, other interventions are required to further reduce the prevalence of antibiotic use in acute bronchitis.