May 1, 2002 By:
Jill Wechsler Pharmaceutical Executive
Pictured from left to right: Paulo Costa, president and CEO, Novartis; Robert Ingram, COO and president, pharmaceutical operations,
GlaxoSmithKline; Richard J. Markham, CEO, Aventis; David Brennan, president & CEO, North America, AstraZeneca; Donald J. Hayden,
Jr., president, North American medicines, Bristol-Myers Squibb; David B. Goffredo, president, pharmaceutical products division,
Abbott Laboratories; Christine A. Poon, worldwide chairman, pharmaceuticals group, Johnson & Johnson.
In response to public pressure for relief from high prescription costs, seven pharma companies will establish the joint discount
card program "Together Rx" for Medicare beneficiaries. The participants-Abbott, AstraZeneca, Aventis, Bristol-Myers Squibb,
GlaxoSmithKline, Johnson & Johnson, and Novartis-said they will offer discounts of 2-40 percent off "list" retail prices for
low-income Medicare enrollees-those with under $38,000 income per couple. McKesson is administering the program and hopes
to sign up a broad network of cooperating pharmacies.
One aim of the initiative is to reduce consumer confusion stemming from the recent proliferation of pharmacy discount cards
from manufacturers, states, and pharmacies. However, Pfizer and Eli Lilly, which have their own programs, are not on the list
of seven. And Merck plans to expand its patient assistance program instead of joining the card consortium. The company says
it is trying to make it easier for people to sign up for its free access program by publishing a toll-free number and distributing
medicines directly to patients.
Consumer advocates warned that the card discounts might be fairly small and that patients could be hit with changes in coverage
and discounts. Ron Pollack, executive director of Families USA, termed the program a pricing "shell game" because the discounts
are based on company wholesale prices that are "likely to rise."
Jill Wechsler is the Washington Editor for Pharmaceutical Executive and writes about federal government policies and programs that affect the pharmaceutical industry. Her monthly Washington Report discusses legislative proposals, FDA initiatives and actions by other government agencies, including Medicare pharmacy benefit proposals, federal
investigations related to pharmaceutical company marketing, debate over DTC advertising, generic drug competition, over-the-counter initiatives, among
other topics. She has written for PE for more than ten years and also covers Washington for other Advanstar publications, including Pharmaceutical Technology, Applied Clinical Trials, BioPharm, Managed Healthcare Executive and Formulary. Prior to that she reported on
government policies and a wide range of topics for business and consumer publications.
Articles by Jill Wechsler
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