AdvancePCS offers drug discount program for all in the USA

Following a string of drug-discount plan discussions in the USA,pharmacy benefit manager AdvancePCS has teamed up with 11 pharmaceutical companies to offer a discount program, the AdvancePCS RxSavings Plan. It will initially discount 21 commonly-prescribed medications, including Pfizer's hypertension treatment Accupril (quinapril), Novo Nordisk Pharmaceutical's Novolin (insulin) for diabetes and Monarch Pharmaceuticals' hypertension drug Altace (ramipril).

The Advance PCS RxSavings program is free to join and has no age or income restrictions, as do some other proposed programs. "The people who end up paying the highest price for their medications often are the ones who can least afford it," commented David Halbert, chief executive of AdvancePCS.

Furthermore, the card has a built-in safety feature to protect its holders against harmful drug interactions. An online alert is sent to the pharmacist whenever one drug may conflict with another drug the patient is taking. This is to prevent mishap to patients who may be taking several drugs that have been prescribed by different doctors.