2019 Pharmacy Cost-savings Opportunities – A Summary

2019 Pharmacy Cost-savings Opportunities – A Summary

May 21st, 2019 | Clinical Connections

For 2019 we have identified opportunities for cost-savings on pharmacy spend across the network in several therapeutic areas. Here are 10 recommendations that you can put into practice today that impact quality and/or cost of medication prescribing in across the network:

1. Avoid use of GLP-1 agonists and DPP-4 inhibitors in combination for the treatment of type 2 diabetes.
2. Utilize the AHP Migraine Guideline to improve overall migraine management for your patients.
• Prefer ibuprofen or sumatriptan tablets first-line as acute migraine abortive agents.
• Reserve CGRP monoclonal antibodies for episodic migraine patients who can’t tolerate or have inadequate response to a minimum 6-week trial of at least 2 other preventative agents.
3. Avoid Dexilant (dexlansoprazole) when prescribing a PPI and change those on Dexilant to a generic or OTC PPI.
4. Ensure patients on long-term PPI therapy have an appropriate long-term indication (e.g., Barrett’s esophagus), if not consider deprescribing.
5. Utilize generic stimulants for ADHD whenever possible.
6. Prefer generic fluticasone/salmeterol formulations or Symbicort when prescribing an ICS/LABA inhaler.
7. Avoid prescribing Glumetza (metformin extended release, modified) by writing prescriptions for Glucophage XR (DAW0).
8. Prescribe Basaglar (insulin glargine) preferentially as a long-acting insulin.
9. Don’t routinely recommend daily home glucose monitoring for patients who have type 2 diabetes and are not using insulin or sulfonylureas.
10. Utilize generic (OTC or RX) fluticasone propionate nasal spray as the preferred intranasal corticosteroid.

For details on each of these opportunities that may be impactful in your day to day practice please review the document below. You can also email Erica Dobson or Jennifer Radcliffe to request a targeted patient list for the above initiatives or to request an in-person pharmacy outreach visit (1:1 or group) to hear more about any or all of the initiatives above.

As always, we welcome your feedback and are available to answer any questions you may have.

Thank you for your engagement in our pharmacy initiatives,

Erica Dobson, Pharm.D., BCPS
Jennifer Radcliffe, Pharm.D., BCACP