How Might the Medicare Prescription Drug, Improvement, and Modernization Act of 2003 Affect the Financial Viability of Rural Pharmacies?
An Analysis of Pre-Implementation Prescription Volume and Payment Sources in Rural and Urban Areas Date: 2005 Author(s): Erin P. Fraher, Rebecca T. Slifkin, Laura Smith, Randy Randolph, Matthew Rudolf, George M. Holmes Research center: North Carolina Rural Health Research and Policy Analysis Center Topics: Health care financing, Health policy, Medicare Part D, Pharmacy and prescription drugs Citation: Journal of Rural Health, 21(2), 114-121 Presents descriptive information on mail-order prescriptions, volume, and payer type of retail prescriptions in rural vs. urban areas. Together, these data provide a baseline for evaluating how implementation of the MMA may affect the financial viability of rural independent pharmacies. The authors found that the volume of mail-order prescriptions is small. Rural providers prescribed fewer retail and mail-order prescriptions per person, but more units per person. Rural areas have a higher percentage of prescriptions paid for by cash (18% vs. 13%) an
An Analysis of Pre-Implementation Prescription Volume and Payment Sources in Rural and Urban Areas Date: 2005 Author(s): Erin P. Fraher, Rebecca T. Slifkin, Laura Smith, Randy Randolph, Matthew Rudolf, George M. Holmes Research center: North Carolina Rural Health Research and Policy Analysis Center Topics: Health care financing, Health policy, Medicare Part D, Pharmacy and prescription drugs Citation: Journal of Rural Health, 21(2), 114-121 Presents descriptive information on mail-order prescriptions, volume, and payer type of retail prescriptions in rural vs. urban areas. Together, these data provide a baseline for evaluating how implementation of the MMA may affect the financial viability of rural independent pharmacies. The authors found that the volume of mail-order prescriptions is small. Rural providers prescribed fewer retail and mail-order prescriptions per person, but more units per person. Rural areas have a higher percentage of prescriptions paid for by cash (18% vs. 13%) an
