Longs Drug Stores to Continue to Service Medi-Cal Patients
Posted on: Wednesday, 2 July 2008, 09:01 CDT
California-based Longs Drug Stores has announced that it will continue to honor new and refilled prescriptions for patients covered by Medi-Cal despite the state's plan to cut reimbursements effective July 2008.
In February 2008, in the face of a multi-billion dollar deficit, the California legislature passed and the governor signed into law a 10% reduction on all Medicaid (Medi-Cal) reimbursements. Because under the new law the state will be paying pharmacies less than their cost for the brand medication in many cases, it is anticipated that some pharmacies may decline to fill such prescriptions. If this occurs, Longs is particularly concerned for cancer, HIV/AIDS, and mental health patients who could be impacted.
Bruce Schwallie, executive vice president of business development and managed care for Longs Drugs, said: "We believe that continuing to fill these prescriptions is the right thing to do for our patients at the current time. We have a tradition of caring for Californians for over 70 years and we want to make certain our patients have access to their necessary medications.
"Discussions continue with the state as to how the current budget crisis can be addressed while minimizing the impact for people who need these medications to not only maintain their health and wellness, but in some extreme cases, to survive."
Source: Datamonitor
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