Pharmacy Technology Blog

The community pharmacy owner plays an important part of pharmacy credibility, the healthcare of their patient-customers, and an economic advantage to their community. Many pharmacy owners I talk with discover the discipline of economic principles to be confusing, boring, or even depressing as a subject in general.  We talk about supply & demand, the PBM payment lifecycle, and stiff competition from the national chains. As a small business owner a certain level of economic theory sometimes seems too abstract to be relevant to their day-to-day lives. Even if pharmacy owners express to me they understand it, in many cases – their executable actions based on economics don’t match their everyday reality – in running their businesses.

I might be harsh in my opinions of some of their choices – after all they are “independent pharmacy owners” and have every right to make specific business decision they see fit for their individual prosperity but you can’t argue with the basic principles of economics.

Economics is studied just as much as medicine. There’s data accumulated over the years to back outcomes in both economics & in medicine.

Economics, whether that be macro or micro, can be reduced to three basic principles: scarcity, efficiency, and sovereignty. These principles were not created by an economist anymore than the stages of a drug’s metabolic effect was created by a pharmacist. These principles exist regardless of whether individuals live in market economies or planned economies. Read more →

• How are Independent Pharmacy Businesses handling this issue?
• Does anyone is the community pharmacy space know? 
• How will this impact communications with Patient-Customers? 

CVS has announced that it no longer will mail prescription refill notices to consumers on behalf of pharmaceutical companies because of the new HIPAA omnibus rule, Modern Healthcare reports.

About the Refill Notices

CVS currently uses data from patients’ prescription drug records to mail refill notices on behalf of pharmaceutical firms.

According to Modern Healthcare, between 75 million and 100 million refill notices are sent annually, primarily to patients with chronic conditions. Drug companies typically pay pharmacies about $1.50 per mailed notice (Conn, Modern Healthcare, 5/6).

About the HIPAA Omnibus Rule

The final HIPAA omnibus rule — which includes four final rules that implement tougher privacy and security provisions — was called for under the 2009 federal economic stimulus package’s HITECH Act and the Genetic Information Nondiscrimination Act. The rules:

• Clarify when breaches must be reported to HHS’ Office for Civil Rights;
• Establish new standards for the use of patient-identifiable information for fundraising and marketing;
• Expand liability to “business associates” of hospitals and other “HIPAA-covered entities,” such as data miners and health IT service providers; and
• Raise the maximum penalty for noncompliance to $1.5 million per violation (iHealthBeat, 5/2).

Read more:

http://www.ihealthbeat.org/articles/2013/5/7/cvs-ends-rx-companysponsored-drug-refill-notices-citing-hipaa.aspx

Published on Apr 18, 2013

Dr. Timothy Ulbrich – Why the Pharmacist is paramount to helping to fix our health-care crisis

Read more →

PROCESS for PROGRESS:

A different kind of Credit Card Processing Company. On a mission – dedicated to helping your pharmacy business thrive while you service your community.  Independent Pharmacy owners have an opporuntiy to simplify their merchant services & save money.

Process for Progress will directly donate 10% of their profits from your pharmacy business merchant account to a community assistance program called - Scripts-on-Wheels.  Period.  No loopholes, no cloudy sales agreements, no long list of extra fees, just  a little help for someone that you feel needs it.

Just because we are donating a portion of our profits, doesn’t mean we can’t save you money.  In fact, 99% of the time we can give you lower rates than you are currently being processed at. On top of that, we offer no extra fees including no contract  fees, cancelation fees, annual fees or monthly minimums.

It’s a small idea but we’re no small processing company.  We’re backed by one of the processing juggernauts,  Capital Bankcard,to guarantee  your business is in the best hands in the industry.  In fact, they were voted the “Best Credit Card Processing  ISO” in 2009 by the industry’s largest independent association.  With them at our backs and you at our side, we feel we can make a big difference in your community.

We’ll beat your current rates.

We’d love to go over the details with you. 

Call the Pharmacy Podcast Show today to learn how to get invovled, cut credit car procdessing fees, and assist those in need of vital medications through Scripts-on-Wheels: (412) 486-0800 

Press Release:

http://www.free-press-release.com/news-mission-driven-process-for-progress-helping-independent-community-pharmacy-1367850497.html

Pharmacy Social Media

The question “Does Social Media help generate more revenue for a Pharmacy Business” has once and for all been answered – without doubt, without argument, and without lack of ROI proof.

Duane Reade: Generating Millions of Impressions Through User Generated Content
http://www.business2community.com/content-marketing/duane-reade-generating-millions-of-impressions-through-user-generated-content-0376645#KTKxLmpZFPgmYHVe.99

Pharmacists have long played a role in educating patients on matters influencing health care. Social media mediums like Twitter and Facebook offer several unique features that may be used to advance the role of pharmacy in health care initiatives.

Public familiarity with social media, the economical nature of using social media, and the ability to disseminate information rapidly through social media make these new applications ideal for pharmacists wanting to provide innovative health care on both an individual and public level.

One of our greatest concerns as pharmacists should be that safe and accurate information is disseminated through these social media channels. Scientifically proven facts and studies can be invaluable to patients, while inaccurate data can result in unsafe and dangerous outcomes. A great example of harmful information found on social media sites was that of the alleged link between MMR vaccinations and autism. While the basis for this link was a 1998 study that has since been debunked, the number of measles cases in the United Kingdom has increased dramatically in the past decade. The proliferation of misinformation through social media channels has led to tens of thousands of individuals being affected adversely.

It’s NOT “does it work” it’s HOW to make it work. There’s an element of balance to the usage of Social Media and Ethics have nothing to do with it – if you’re following the same guidelines that you’d follow ANYWHERE else you’re communicating with your patient-customers.

As the wise Yoda once said:
“Do or do not… there is no try.”

Contact a Pharmacy Business Social Media consultant today and budget your marketing plan. If you “Do not” you will lose out. I guarantee it.

Established through a partnership of Parata Systems and Pharmacy Times, the Next-Generation Pharmacist™ program salutes pharmacy professionals in a variety of industry categories who are defining the future of pharmacy. The national awards program recognizes and honors pharmacists, technicians, student pharmacists and industry advocates who are defining the future of the industry. Now in its fourth year, the program includes 10 categories.  Read more →