Pharmacy benefits for Alaska school districts: What to look for in a PBM
Philip Carroll, VP, Sales and Account Management, Integrated Prescription Management (IPM)
With its rugged terrain, lush forests, and sprawling tundra, Alaska is often ranked among the U.S.’s most beautiful states. The natural landscape however can also lead to challenges in providing access to care and prescription medications to people across the state.
Much of Alaska isn’t accessible by roads and can only be reached by bush planes or boats. Isolated areas often don’t have a local pharmacy and depend on their prescriptions being filled in a major city and then flown to individual towns for delivery. Volatile weather conditions can further complicate prescription access and delivery, resulting in logistical delays such as inability to drive to a pharmacy or planes being grounded due to storms. This can be especially concerning for high-risk patients who take temperature-sensitive medications requiring special handling and 48-hour delivery windows.
Everyone deserves to get their medications in a timely manner, regardless of their location. A pharmacy benefit manager can guide plan sponsors, like school districts, in implementing programs and practices to improve member health outcomes and satisfaction.
What is a PBM?
A pharmacy benefit manager (PBM) works with plan sponsors to design and manage their pharmacy benefit plans. Both parties work together to build their ideal pharmacy benefit plan by choosing co-payments, deductibles, and clinical programs.
Once the ideal plan is constructed, the plan sponsor leans on the PBM to administer the plan’s specific parameters to minimize drug spend, while identifying market trends and patterns in drug utilization. The PBM will also educate the employees about what coverage they have and how they can stretch their benefits.
What can a PBM do for Alaska school districts?
Alaska school districts should work with a PBM who is flexible, open to collaboration, and has experience working in Alaska. With a little creativity and consultation, a PBM can build tailored solutions to meet specific client needs.
Solutions include:
- Building a mini custom pharmacy network
- Negotiating with local hospital pharmacies to dispense certain medications, giving members the option to get sensitive prescriptions in person as weather permits
- Allowing members to refill prescriptions sooner so it’s easier to stay on top of their treatment plan
- Allowing for 120-day supplies instead of 90 days so members have their medications on hand for a longer amount of time
According to the Institute of Education Sciences, Alaska schools continue to deal with high levels of teacher turnover, particularly in rural areas. Offering a competitive employee benefit by working with a knowledgeable PBM partner is a welcome incentive for employees, giving them ease of mind that you have made their health a priority.
Is your school district currently working with a PBM to improve employee health and prescription access, while managing pharmacy spend? If not, it may be time to change that. By working with a PBM who understands what Alaskan plan sponsors need, school districts will have a partner able to efficiently and strategically make access to care improvements to their benefit plan. At a time when both employee turnover and medication prices are high, a PBM could be just the solution you are looking for.
The views expressed here are the writer’s and are not necessarily endorsed by the Association of Alaska School Boards. AASB welcomes diverse perspectives and civil discourse. To submit a Guest Column for consideration, see our Guest Column Guidelines and email your 400-1000 word submission HERE.