If your patients are having trouble affording their medications, the easy-to-use, no-cost Partnership for Prescription Assistance (PPA) program that offers free, or nearly free, prescriptions may be able to help.
Sponsored by the Pharmaceutical Research and Manufacturers of America (PhRMA) and its member companies, the PPA offers a single point of access to more than 475 programs that provide medicines at no cost, or at deep discounts.
Patients can contact the PPA through toll-free by calling 1.888.4PPA-NOW (1.888.477.2669) or through the PPA website. The toll-free operators speak a number of languages, including Spanish.
PPA programs cover well over 2,500 brand-name and generic drugs for a wide range of diseases and medical conditions.
To determine eligibility, those who contact the PPA will be asked a few questions, including the name of their medications, the dosage of the medicines, the household income and the number of dependents. The process generally only takes 15 to 20 minutes.
The PPA program truly offers a one-stop shop for information that can help patients with access to medication, as well as other resources. For example, on the PPA website visitors can find a listing of medical clinics close their home, information on access to medical devices and service animals, as well as information on medical supplies or services needed for people with diabetes, HIV and AIDS.
So far, more than one million Ohioans have been successfully matched to PPA programs, since the initiative started in the state as a pilot project more than 10 years ago. Today, nearly 10 million Americans have benefitted from PPA programs.