Major pharma firms launch drug discount card

The new Together Rx Access Card offers savings on a broad range of pharmaceuticals through a free, easy-to-use card. The card will help uninsured Americans who meet income and age eligibility requirements gain better access to prescription products.

The Together Rx Access LLC includes Abbott, AstraZeneca, Bristol-Myers Squibb, GlaxoSmithKline, members of the Johnson & Johnson family of companies, Novartis, Pfizer, Sanofi-Aventis Group, Takeda, and TAP Pharmaceutical Products.

Together, the participating companies offer savings on more than 275 brand-name prescription products. These products include those used to treat diabetes, hypertension, high cholesterol, cancer, allergy, asthma, arthritis, and depression, which are among the most common conditions affecting Americans.

Eligible uninsured individuals can expect to save approximately 25 to 40% on prescription products directly from the manufacturers, as well as on a wide range of generic products.

To qualify for the card, applicants must be legal US residents under age 65 and otherwise not eligible for Medicare, without public or private prescription drug coverage and with incomes of up to $30,000 for a single person or $60,000 for a family of four.

In addition to participating in Together Rx Access, each of the ten participating companies independently offers patient assistance programs (PAPs). People applying to enroll for Together Rx Access will be automatically notified if they may be eligible for further savings – and in some cases free medicines – through these PAPs.

“The Together Rx Access Card will make life-saving and life-enhancing prescription medicines more affordable for millions of uninsured patients,” said Tommy Thompson, secretary of Health and Human Services, US Department of Health and Human Services. “This program is a great example of private sector leaders coming together with an innovative solution to a complex problem.”