Employers in the U.S. expect health plan cost per employee to rise 5.6 percent on average in 2023, HR consultancy Mercer reported. With inflation and increasing drug prices, HR-decision makers need to find new ways to provide high-quality healthcare at the lowest costs for employees and the organization. This is a tricky balancing act between offering quality coverage and controlling costs for employees and the plan. One way that innovative employers are solving this dilemma is through mHealth (mobile health) technology.
A 2022 survey of 564 HR benefits decision-makers revealed that two-thirds of employers want innovative cost-containment solutions, with 79 percent ranking “making costs more transparent” and “reducing out-of-pocket expenses for drug costs” as important factors.
myDrugCosts was able to help a large technology company reduce its corporate pharmacy spending by 24percent through educating and notifying members of savings opportunities on their medications. myDrugCosts also identified an additional 16 percent reduction if the remaining employees were to sign up for myDrugCosts and take advantage of savings opportunities identified by this employee benefit.
In 2022, this company received more than 1,200 claims with savings opportunities, including.
- ARIPiprazole: 85 claims with potential corporate savings of $33,307
- Rosuvastatin Calcium: 160 claims with potential corporate savings of $17,440
- LaMICtal: 2 claims with potential corporate savings of $14,822
- Esomeprazole Magnesium: 37 claims with potential corporate savings of $8,625
- Synthroid: 141 claims with potential corporate savings of $7,894
Providing resources to help employees make value-based medication decisions can reduce corporate spending and allow employees to keep more of their paychecks.
A Schaeffer Center study found that commercially insured patients’ co-payments for generic prescriptions exceeded the total cost of the medicine more than a quarter of the time. However, finding these opportunities can be incredibly difficult given the lack of cost transparency for prescription drugs. That’s where mHealth technologies like the myDrugCosts platform come into play.
Using one of myDrugCosts’ clients, a regional bank, myDrugCosts was able to identify potential savings opportunities for the bank’s employees. These employees can use their personalized myDrugCosts app to check on-plan and off-plan buying options to find savings opportunities, including:
- Desvenlafaxine Succinate ER (Brand:Pristiq): with insurance $84; off-plan $26
- Pregabalin (Brand: Lyrica): withinsurance $62; off-plan option $20
- Oseltamivir Phosphate (Brand:Tamiflu): with insurance $88; off-plan option $14
- Vancomycin (Brand: Vancocin): withinsurance $85; off-plan option $47
- Imatinib Mesylate (Brand: Gleevec):with insurance $7,000; off-plan option $44
HR decision-makers need to find ways to save money while not reducing the quality of healthcare coverage offered. Adding and promoting mHealth technology like myDrugCosts helps employees take more of their salary home, reduces corporate spending, and promotes a work culture that values health and well-being.
