Mobile health app company Epocrates will integrate Walgreens' discount medication list in its mobile tools.
Mobile
medical software company Epocrates is joining with Walgreens to incorporate the
drug store chain's Prescription
Savings Club (PSC) formulary medication
list into its mobile medical applications.
Walgreens'
PSC is a club that provides price drops to
members when they purchase prescriptions with cash.
The
formulary list includes more than 8,000 medications. At least 3,000 physicians
use the applications, according to the two companies.
By
searching the Walgreens formulary list on Epocrates mobile applications, health
care providers will be able to search for less-expensive drugs.
"By
having this information readily available at the point of care, health care
providers can have a meaningful conversation with patients about prescriptions
and find the right fit medically and financially," said Rose Crane,
Epocrates' president and CEO, in a
statement.
Having
the Walgreens formulary list available on smartphones could also lead to
patients following through on a doctor's order to take the medication.
"When
I prescribe a medication for a patient, I'm not always confident they will get
it filled," said Dr. Robert Dudley, a family practice physician, in a
statement. "Now with access to the Walgreens PSC
formulary, I can give them an affordable option and definitive location to pick
up the prescription. I'm hopeful this will make it easier for patients to
comply with their drug regimen and be easier on their wallets."
Epocrates
offers several mobile apps, ranging from free to $269 (with a two-year
agreement). They run on Android, BlackBerry, iPhone, Palm and Windows Mobile
devices. The company also plans to add its medical
tools to the Apple iPad.
The
free Epocrates Rx app includes a drug interaction checker, information on
brand-name over-the-counter drugs, medical news and alerts. Epocrates Rx Pro
adds an infectious disease treatment guide and information on herbal
medicine.
Epocrates
Essentials offers the same features as the other two versions, plus disease
monographs and lab test reports.
The
Epocrates apps have an effect on changing medication choices, according to the
company. In a survey of more than 1,000 physicians, approximately 80 percent of
respondents changed their mind on which medication to prescribe based on
content in Epocrates' apps.
"As
health care providers, we help patients be compliant with their medications and
want to make sure they are aware of their options, including ways to realize
savings without compromising safety, service or convenience," Richard
Ashworth, Walgreens' vice president of pharmacy operations, said in a
statement.
In
June Walgreens unveiled a new mobile site and updated
its iPhone app to provide SMS alerts when a customer's prescription is
ready. The app also offers prescription refills, coupons, a store locator, and
photo uploads and ordering.
Brian T. Horowitz is a freelance technology and health writer as well as a copy editor. Brian has worked on the tech beat since 1996 and covered health care IT and rugged mobile computing for eWEEK since 2010. He has contributed to more than 20 publications, including Computer Shopper, Fast Company, FOXNews.com, More, NYSE Magazine, Parents, ScientificAmerican.com, USA Weekend and Womansday.com, as well as other consumer and trade publications. Brian holds a B.A. from Hofstra University in New York.
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