Kalamazoo County says it might be able to help residents save on their prescription drugs. It’s considering signing up for a privately-run discount program. Commissioner Julie Rogers says at least one of the options offers 25 percent off some prescriptions – and more off of mail-order drugs.
Rogers, who’s a physical therapist, says that could make a big difference for people who can’t afford both food and medicine.
"I recently had a situation where a patient had come in with headache, dizziness – I took his blood pressure, it was 200 over 100, we had to call the ambulance. And that was the very situation. He had lost his job, and he had to choose between groceries and his medications," she says.
Board member Stephanie Moore says a discount program is worth pursuing. But she also says the county needs to make sure the one it chooses has real value.
“You don’t want to walk around with another card, you’ve got one for every restaurant, for every department store, you don’t want to have another card that really isn’t going to give you a real benefit. So we don’t want to give people false hope, we want to make sure that they have what they need to be successful and have a better quality of life,” she says.
Moore says the county should work to determine which plan would help the most people with the least access to health care – not just what has worked for other counties.
"The cookie cutter that works in other parts of the state and the country may not do the same here in Kalamazoo because we are unique. We are – we do have different demographics. And the needs are different and much greater here," she says.
Other commissioners say it’s important to make sure that locally-owned pharmacies can participate in the discount program. The Board plans to review the options at its next meeting in two weeks.
