Journal of managed care & specialty pharmacy
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The accountable care organization (ACO) model being adopted across the United States aims to improve patient care and reduce costs. Little is known about whether commercial ACO contracts include accountability for prescription drug spending or how ACOs are engaging outpatient pharmacies and managing prescription drug use. ⋯ Management of pharmacy services and prescription spending will likely influence commercial ACO contract success. Given the broad potential impact of prescription use on overall spending and quality, payers might encourage integration of pharmacy services in ACOs through prescribing quality and prescription spending performance measures.
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J Manag Care Spec Pharm · Apr 2015
Randomized Controlled TrialEvaluation of the influence of a pharmacist-led patient-centered medication therapy management and reconciliation service in collaboration with emergency department physicians.
The implementation of the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act is anticipated to increase the frequency of emergency department (ED) visits. Therefore, there is a critical need to improve the quality of care transitions among ED patients from ED to outpatient services. ⋯ The implementation of a patient-centered approach to medication therapy management and reconciliation improved the odds of patients visiting their PC providers, a positive first step in transitioning patients toward an appropriate use of PC services.
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J Manag Care Spec Pharm · Apr 2015
Accuracy of pharmacy benefit manager medication formularies in an electronic health record system and the Epocrates mobile application.
Physicians commonly use formulary medication coverage information generated by electronic heath records (EHRs) and the Epocrates mobile drug database application when making medication selection decisions. Nonformulary selections may lead to higher out-of-pocket patient costs and nonadherence with prescribed regimens. Nonformulary selections also contribute to higher overall health plan spending. However, the accuracy of these systems compared with actual insurance coverage is not known. ⋯ Formulary information generated by the EHR system and the Epocrates mobile application is a useful tool for physicians when prescribing medications, but neither source is completely accurate. Prescribers should be particularly cautious when making OTC formulary decisions using the Epocrates mobile application, since the formulary information provided for these medications was found to be the least accurate.
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Abstracts provide a forum through which authors can share their insights and outcomes of advanced managed care practice through publication in AMCP's Journal of Managed Care Specialty Pharmacy (JMCP). Of the abstracts accepted for publication, most are presented as posters, so interested AMCP meeting attendees can review the findings and query authors. The main poster presentation is Thursday, April 9, 2015; posters are also displayed on Friday, April 10, 2015. The AMCP 2015 Annual Meeting Expo in San Diego, California, is expected to attract more than 3,500 managed care pharmacists and other health care professionals who manage and evaluate drug therapies, develop and manage networks, and work with medical managers and information specialists to improve the care of all individuals enrolled in managed care programs.