Discount cards, available in June, will offer savings of 22 percent off retail price
Allegheny County Executive Dan Onorato today announced the County will soon introduce a prescription discount card program to help consumers cope with the high price of prescriptions. Allegheny County has signed a contract to make free prescription discount cards available under a program sponsored by the National Association of Counties (NACo) that offers average savings of 22 percent off the retail price of commonly prescribed drugs.
The cards, which will be available in mid-June, may be used by all Allegheny County residents, regardless of age, income or existing health coverage. There are more than 300 pharmacies in Allegheny County that will accept the NACo card, and a national network of more than 60,000 participating retail pharmacies will also honor the card.
“The NACo prescription discount card will offer significant savings for the uninsured and underinsured residents of Allegheny County,” said Onorato. “Even those fortunate to have prescription coverage may use the card to save money on drugs that are not covered by their health plan. The cards will be available to any resident, and there is no enrollment form, no membership fee, and no restrictions or limits on frequency of use.”
There is no cost to taxpayers for NACo and Allegheny County to make these money-saving cards available to residents. Cards will be available via the Internet, at various County facilities, and other easily accessible public locations. More details will be released when the program is launched in June.
Using the NACo prescription discount card will be easy. A cardholder will simply present it at a participating pharmacy. Cardholders and their family members may use the card any time their prescriptions are not covered by insurance. The discount card can also be used when a pet is prescribed a medication that is used to treat a human condition.
The 2,200 participants at yesterday’s Senior Celebration in the Park were the first to learn that Allegheny County would be offering the NACo about the prescription discount card. Information about the program was provided to all attendees.
The NACo prescription discount card program is administered by CVS Caremark.
