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Adherence

Consumers have multiple reasons for non-adherence. Proactive pharmacy care has multiple solutions.

While many factors affect adherence, the five main reasons consumers give for not taking prescribed medications are fairly simple2:

  • They forgot.
  • They decided they didn’t need the prescription.
  • They were troubled by side effects.
  • They found it hard to fill the prescription.
  • The prescription was too expensive.

How Proactive Pharmacy Care Can Help

  • Strategies for Those Who Forget to Refill

    • Mail service pharmacy users receive refill reminders via e-mail, phone or text through the Caremark Messaging Platform. E-mail reminders provide links to make it easy to order the refill online.
    • If they still delay, they can get up to a five-day bridge supply at their CVS/pharmacy store to tide them over until their mail prescription arrives.
    • Plan participants using their local CVS/pharmacy receive a proactive interactive voice response (IVR) “offer to refill” call a few days before a refill is due and a pick-up prompt when the prescription is ready.
    • CVS Pharmacists at many stores can offer to fill other overdue prescriptions when the plan participant comes in to pick up a new prescription. 35 percent of consumers agreed in pilot programs. 3

  • If They Decided They No Longer Need the Drug or Are Troubled by Side Effects

    • First-fill counseling at CVS/pharmacy targets key drugs commonly discontinued after the first fill. Plan participants filling prescriptions for those drugs for the first time will proactively be offered counseling by the CVS Pharmacist. Counseling protocols stress the importance of adhering to therapy, how to manage side effects and other issues or concerns pertinent to the targeted drug. Pilot program results show a 20 percent lower therapy drop-off rate with this enhanced counseling. 4
    • Plan participants can also call our Customer Care Representatives, who can put them in touch with our Clinical Pharmacists to address clinical concerns and any questions they may have about their drugs.

  • Found the prescription hard to fill?

    We know cost and convenience are prime determinants of consumer behavior. That’s why we’ve made filling a prescription so easy and have so many ways to help consumers save money on their prescriptions. See Managing Pharmacy Cost.

  • Evidence-based Plan Design Helps Those Concerned About Cost

    • Evidence-based plan design (EBPD) has improved adherence by up to 30 percent for our clients.5
    • Our Analytics team has modeled and CVS Caremark has implemented evidence-based plans that offer incentives such as lower or waived copays for targeted conditions, drugs or plan participants.
    • EBPD has improved adherence and lowered therapy drop off rates.
    • EBPD reduced PMPY costs for plan participants with chronic conditions by as much as 16 percent.6

  • 1 NEJM Volume 353:487-497. August 4, 2005. Adherence to Medication. Accessed May 28, 2008. content.nejm.org.cgi/content/full/353/5/487
    2 Study done by CVS Caremark Analytics and Outcomes, February 2008.
    3 CVS Caremark 2008 data based on pilot program (PCI) in CVS stores
    4 CVS Caremark 2008 data based on pilot program (PCI) in CVS stores
    5 CVS Caremark 2007 data
    6 CVS Caremark 2007 data