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Prescription DrugsWhen you order your prescriptions for maintenance / long-term drugs via BeneCardPBF, a licensed pharmacy fills and delivers your prescription to your home. Also known as "home delivery pharmacy", mail-order pharmacy saves you time and money with fewer trips to the pharmacy -- and you can usually fill your maintenance prescriptions for a three-month supply at a time. Questions on how to get started? Here's how: Log in: BeneCardPBF Online Services Call toll-free: (877) 723-6005 Complete and send: the Mail Service Form and your original prescription order to BeneCardPBF Approved by the Food and Drug Administration (FDA), generic drugs are as safe and effective as the equivalent brand-name drug, and offer you a way to take control of your health care costs. In certain instances, you have a choice between brand-name and generic drugs. To take advantage of your plan's lower generic copay instead of the higher brand-name copay, ask your physician to prescribe a generic drug or write a prescription that allows for substitution of a generic drug whenever possible. Visit the following links to find more information about generic drugs: FDA Recent Generic Drug Approvals FDA Generic Drugs: Questions & Answers Eligible for Medicare? If you are eligible for Medicare and are enrolled in the District prescription plan, you are enrolled in a 'creditable coverage' plan. This means you will not be penalized when you decide to enroll in a Medicare Part D plan in the future because your District plan is expected to cover your prescription drugs on the same level as a standard Medicare plan. You are provided with a Notice of Creditable Coverage (below) annually; be sure to keep these notices on file. Visit www.medicare.gov for more information. 2025 Notice of Creditable Coverage 2024 Notice of Creditable Coverage 2023 Notice of Creditable Coverage 2022 Notice of Creditable Coverage 2021 Notice of Creditable Coverage 2020 Notice of Creditable Coverage 2019 Notice of Creditable Coverage 2018 Notice of Creditable Coverage 2017 Notice of Creditable Coverage Specialty drugs / medications are derived through complex biological or genetically engineered processes. They are used to treat very serious or chronic medical conditions such as cancer, rheumatoid arthritis, cystic fibrosis, growth hormone deficiency, and multiple sclerosis. These medications require special handling, careful administration, and ongoing patient care management. Step-Therapy Program The step-therapy program is designed to ensure quality and manage costs. If more than one medication in certain drug classes has been shown to be clinically effective but at varying costs, step-therapy programs require a trial with the lower-cost drug before approval of the higher-cost drug, where clinically appropriate. If the patient purchases the higher-cost drug without prior approval, there will be no coverage for the higher-cost drug. Your BeneCardPBF employs step-therapy in each of the following drug categories: • Proton Pump Inhibitors (Ulcer/Reflux medications) • SSRI/SSNRI (Antidepressants) • Osteoporosis • Nasal Steroids • Hypnotics • Triptans (Migraine) • ARBs (High Blood Pressure/Hypertension) |