Too often these days we read in the news about people having to make a choice between eating three square meals a day or taking their medication. The skyrocketing cost of prescription drugs has put a burden on not only the elderly living on a fixed income, but on the chronically ill, the uninsured, and those struggling to feed their families and make ends meet.
When I was elected county executive, I vowed that I would find new ways…better ways… to help all residents enjoy a quality of life that made them proud to live in Nassau County.
Today, I am announcing a new and improved, free prescription drug discount program that is available to all Nassau County residents at no cost to taxpayers. This program was developed by Nassau County and ProAct Inc., a pharmacy benefit management company, to help lower the cost of prescription drugs for all residents.
This program is another example of my administration’s efforts to assist residents with cost savings initiatives. Participation could not be any easier. Our partnership with ProAct represents an intelligent solution to the high costs associated with prescription drugs.
Nassau County residents will receive in the mail a discount drug card that can be used by anyone regardless of age, income, or existing health coverage. On average, it will help lower prescription drug costs for all who use it by 10-20 percent on brand name drugs and 20-70 percent on generic medications. Cards will also be available through Nassau County agencies, pharmacies and at www.NYRxDiscountCard.com.
Residents will have a variety of purchase and service options that include retail, mail and Internet; supported by a toll-free 24-hour per day helpdesk. Those with little or no prescription drug coverage will experience savings with their first purchase while those who have insurance will receive discounts on those prescriptions that are not covered by their plan.
The new program offers several major differences from the original prescription drug plan. Residents will only be required to pay the discount price of the drug to participating pharmacies, thereby eliminating the additional dispensing fee that had been required in the past.
ProAct cards are accepted at more than 290 Nassau County pharmacies and can be used at 60,000 participating pharmacies nationwide with an average savings of 47 percent. The 24-hour per day help desk support expands the prior 11-hour daily coverage, Monday through Saturday. Help desk support will be in multiple languages, including but not limited to English, Spanish, Chinese, Korean, Italian, Greek, Russian, Tagalog, French and French Creole.
There are no enrollment or registration requirements and additional or replacement cards can be downloaded immediately from the ProAct website. One card covers an entire family.
For information, including a list of participating pharmacies, call ProAct Help Desk at 1-877-776-2285 or visit www.NYRxDiscountCard.com or contact my office at (516) 571-6000.
