OHIO Governor touts developments in efforts to aid residents with cost of medications

A Golden Buckeye discount is expected to help more than 2 million Ohioans.
COLUMBUS (AP) -- A prescription-drug discount plan reached by drug makers and a coalition representing consumers will be a welcome addition once the Legislature makes the changes to Ohio law required to put the plan in place, Gov. Bob Taft says.
Meanwhile, people 60 and over should start saving money now under the long-awaited Golden Buckeye Card-based program Taft announced Monday.
"We're still waiting for the details. The bill is still being drafted. That program is still a long way from implementation, although we will work closely with everybody involved," Taft said of the plan involving the coalition and drug makers. "There are still some bridges to be crossed."
The Golden Buckeye program is expected to help more than 2 million Ohioans save up to 30 percent on prescription drugs. That number includes about 680,000 Ohioans who have no insurance or are underinsured for prescription drugs.
Who can participate
The state began mailing new cards to eligible Ohioans on Monday. Any Ohioan 60 or older can get a Golden Buckeye card. Those with an Ohio driver's license or who are registered to vote will get a card within eight weeks.
Those not getting a card can apply at senior centers or libraries beginning in mid-November. Adults with permanent and total disabilities also are eligible if they are 18 or older.
The program provides 13 percent off the average wholesale price for most name-brand prescription drugs and 20 percent off generic drugs, Taft said. People enrolled in the program can also get customer rebates of 10 percent to 30 percent off the average price on 55 preferred drugs.
About 380,000 Ohioans 60 and older without prescription insurance will qualify for additional savings if they have incomes below 300 percent of the poverty level, or about $30,000 for an individual and $40,000 for a couple, Taft said.
Cardholders also can save up to 40 percent through an optional home delivery program, Taft said.
Months of talks
The Golden Buckeye card program is the result of negotiations with lawmakers, who took 15 months to pass necessary legislation, and talks among the administration, drug makers and pharmacies.
Most drug makers and 92 percent of Ohio pharmacies are taking part in the program, Taft said.
The Ohio Department of Aging will oversee the program. "It has taken us a while, I know," Director Joan Lawrence said.
The savings cannot come soon enough for Marjorie Smallridge, 84, who said she currently pays more than $400 a month for prescription drugs. For Smallridge, it's not a matter of priorities: "I have to have the pills to live."
The announcement came a week after the Coalition for Affordable Prescription Drugs reached agreement with drug makers on a plan to help those 60 and older as well as low-income Ohioans of all ages.
However, that plan still needs legislative approval, and Taft said it was important that seniors be able to get discounts quickly. Taft said if the Legislature approves another plan, the Golden Buckeye card could be used for eligibility.
"Today, we take a very important first step," Taft said. "Ohio becomes the first state in the nation to assemble existing prescription-drug programs on one card."
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