The Problem With Financial Incentives to Drive Pharmacy Choice

The Healthcare Economist highlighted a recent study of financial incentives in the Netherland's pharmacy market. Here's my summary and how it applies to mail versus retail pharmacy choice:

Without financial incentives, convenience has a large impact on choice of pharmacy. People will change pharmacies with temporary financial incentives, but 75% will return to their original pharmacy once the incentives disappear. Permanent incentives result in greater long-term switches.

Many companies use financial incentives (e.g., lower co-payments) to encourage patients to use mail-service pharmacies. However, use of mail-service pharmacy services does not guarantee client cost savings when compared to community-based prescription card programs. Mail-service programs can reduce costs through greater ingredient discounts and reduced dispensing fees. Yet, these savings can be offset by lower patient cost sharing and increased waste of medication.

A document I created a few years back and this article by Norm Carroll provided greater detail on these issues.