Prescription medications are a familiar part of healthcare, but in today’s complex and fast-paced healthcare system, it can be difficult for people to fully understand their medications – and to afford them.

The complexity and pace make errors more common, such as people not taking their medications as directed – known as nonadherence – which can in turn result in adverse reactions and poor outcomes. According to the CDC, nonadherence is responsible for 350,000 hospitalizations and 1.3 million trips to the emergency department each year.[1]

At Accolade, we want to make it easier for people to access, afford and understand their medications. That’s why we and ecosystem partner Rx Savings Solutions are introducing Medication Integrated Care, an innovative solution that helps Accolade customers provide their people with the prescription support they need.

Medication nonadherence is common and costly

A recent survey by the Kaiser Family Foundation found that 60% of American adults take one or more prescription medications, with 25% taking four or more.[2] Ensuring that people can properly manage all these medications, their instructions and their interactions is a lasting challenge for healthcare providers, and without education and support, it is all too easy for people to fall into nonadherence.

Prescription costs also make it hard for many Americans to take their medications as directed, with one third of people reporting that they have skipped doses, cut pills in half, not filled a prescription or taken an over-the-counter option instead.[2] Cost issues are not confined to the pharmacy counter, with healthcare payers encountering rising drug prices as well. In 2021, overall prescription drug costs rose 7.4% for large employers.[3]

Introducing Medication Integrated Care

Medication Integrated Care uses Accolade’s Personalized Healthcare approach and Rx Savings Solutions’ advanced pharmacy cost analytics and member engagement platform to identify members with the highest likelihood of medication-related complications and engage with them to manage their medications.

“The power of providing clinically integrated solutions to companies is that they can turn around and offer a benefit to their employees that closes a major gap in healthcare,” said Dr. Shantanu Nundy, chief medical officer at Accolade. “We provide a personalized service that identifies members most at risk and reach out to help them address their barriers.”

Whether guiding members to more affordable medications or identifying medications that should not be taken together, Medication Integrated Care takes a holistic view of people’s medication regimens and works to make them affordable and effective.

With Medication Integrated Care from Accolade, members get:

• Lower out-of-pocket spend

• Support from a team of experts

• Lowered risk of hospital admissions and serious complications

• Coordinated care with their doctors and pharmacists

Lower prescription costs for your company and your people

Medication Integrated Care from Accolade helps people access more affordable medications by utilizing Rx Savings Solutions’ sophisticated prescription claims analytics and consultations with a pharmacist-led care team. A full view of each member’s medication history and benefits allows this team to guide people to lower cost options when appropriate.

Provide your people with support from a team of experts

To ease the anxiety people often feel when starting a new medication, Medication Integrated Care provides them with a trusted team they can turn to for answers. Because Accolade gets to know every member holistically, our care teams help members resolve issues and overcome barriers they face to accessing their medications and taking them as prescribed.

Lower the risk of medication-related hospital admissions and complications

Accolade’s pharmacist-led team helps lower risk by educating people about their medications, informing them about potential drug interactions and substances they should avoid taking alongside a medication, like grapefruit juice, which can increase the likelihood of side effects in dozens of prescription drugs. By providing education and offering early interventions to members, our Care Team can help prevent complications before they occur.

Take the confusion out of medication management with coordinated care

By conducting a thorough, high-touch review of a person’s medications – a rarity in modern healthcare – and identifying potentially duplicative or harmful medications, Medication Integrated Care alleviates anxiety, confusion and harmful mistakes and makes managing medications easier for members. And when the Care Team does identify an opportunity to improve a member’s medication experience, they work directly with the member’s regular doctor to coordinate that care and improve the treatment plan.

To learn how Medication Integrated Care from Accolade can help reduce direct medication costs for your organization and prevent healthcare complications for your team, contact Accolade today.

[1] https://www.yalemedicine.org/news/polypharmacy

[2] https://www.kff.org/health-costs/poll-finding/public-opinion-on-prescription-drugs-and-their-prices/

[3] https://www.shrm.org/resourcesandtools/hr-topics/benefits/pages/employers-health-plan-costs-rose-sharply-in-2021.aspx