PharMerica

As a member of the Long-Term Care Pharmacy Alliance (LTCPA), a trade association dedicated to promoting the specific needs of long-term care, PharMerica is participating in a federally approved temporary assistance program designed to offset the prescription drug costs of low-income Medicare beneficiaries who reside in nursing facilities.

The benefit is administered through the LTC Card. The card’s development is a result of the passing of the Medicare Prescription Drug Act, which created a new benefit called “transitional assistance” for low-income nursing home residents.

Those who qualify for Medicare and have an annual income of less than 135 percent of the federal poverty level can enroll in the LTC Card temporary assistance program, which will provide a credit of up to $600 per year toward the cost of medications until the new prescription drug benefit (Medicare Part D) takes effect in 2006. The LTC Card is one of three cards approved by the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) to provide transitional assistance to nursing home residents.

In addition to the $600 transitional assistance, residents utilizing the LTC Card are eligible to receive a prescription drug discount from PharMerica. No card or enrollment fee is required, and the discount offers the same federally endorsed benefits as other CMS approved cards. Please note that while PharMerica accepts all CMS approved discount cards, federal law states that a nursing home resident may only use one CMS approved card at any given time.

We are pleased to participate in this opportunity to reduce prescription drug costs for those most in need, and encourage eligible residents to apply. For additional questions about the program, please contact our toll-free Medicare Part D hotline at 1.866.251.5850; email ltccard@pharmerica.com or access www.ltcpa.org/ltccard, where enrollment forms may be downloaded.