ATLANTA, Ga.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Coventry Health Care of Georgia and Walgreens have launched a novel awareness campaign to educate metro Atlanta employers on how they can ensure access to convenient pharmacy services for their employees. The campaign includes print and radio advertisements and outreach to employers whose current health plans will not include Walgreens’ more than 7,700 community drugstores nationwide in their 2012 pharmacy networks.
Coventry Health Care of Georgia is pleased to offer employer groups and all other customers continued access to Walgreens’ pharmacy network in 2012, including all 24-hour pharmacy locations and drive-thru locations. Depending on their choice of health plan, many metro Atlanta employers and their employees will lose Walgreens pharmacies in their pharmacy network beginning Jan. 1, 2012. As a result, the campaign is designed to let local employers know that customers who choose Coventry will have Walgreens in their pharmacy network.
“Coventry knows that metro Atlanta employers want their employees to have convenient access to the pharmacy of their choice. Walgreens offers among the most convenient pharmacy locations in the Atlanta area,” said Tom Davis, chief executive officer of Coventry Health Care of Georgia. “Coventry recognizes the importance of including Walgreens in our pharmacy network, and we want Atlanta employers and consumers to know they have a choice with Coventry.”
Kermit Crawford, Walgreens president of pharmacy, health and wellness said, “Walgreens and Coventry Health Care of Georgia have a strong relationship that makes pharmacy services convenient and accessible for patients and customers in the greater Atlanta community. This relationship gives employers the opportunity to best serve their employees with comprehensive network access to the pharmacy providers who can help patients stay healthy.”
Employers who offer health plans with pharmacy networks in 2012 that do not include Walgreens may have employees who face disruptions in pharmacy care. Such employee disruptions will occur because prescriptions filled at Walgreens in 2012 will not be covered under their plan’s in-network benefit. As a result, employees will have to transfer prescriptions to another pharmacy that may be less convenient than Walgreens or pay for the entire cost of the prescription upfront. In some cases, employers without Walgreens in their pharmacy network could end up paying higher overall medical costs. However, employers who offer a health plan with pharmacy benefits from Coventry Health Care of Georgia will avoid employee pharmacy disruptions, as all Coventry plans include Walgreens in their pharmacy network.
About Coventry Health Care of Georgia
Coventry Health Care of Georgia, Inc. provides health insurance products and services, including HMO, Point-of-Service, PPO and Medicare Advantage, to employers and individuals throughout the state of Georgia. Coventry Health Care of Georgia is URAC health plan accredited and serves over 177,000 Georgia residents. The company features a network of over 17,000 participating health care provider locations in Georgia as well as access to additional provider locations throughout the country. Coventry Health Care of Georgia is a subsidiary of Coventry Health Care, Inc., one of the country’s largest health care companies providing a full range of risk and fee-based health care products and services in all 50 states. For more information, visit Coventry Health Care of Georgia’s website at www.chcga.com.
About Walgreen Co.
Walgreens (www.walgreens.com) is the nation's largest drugstore chain with fiscal 2011 sales of $72 billion. The company operates 7,760 drugstores in all 50 states, the District of Columbia and Puerto Rico. Each day, Walgreens provides nearly 6 million customers the most convenient, multichannel access to consumer goods and services and trusted, cost-effective pharmacy, health and wellness services and advice in communities across America. Walgreens scope of pharmacy services includes retail, specialty, infusion, medical facility and mail service, along with respiratory services. These services improve health outcomes and lower costs for payers including employers, managed care organizations, health systems, pharmacy benefit managers and the public sector. Take Care Health Systems is a Walgreens subsidiary that is the largest and most comprehensive manager of worksite health and wellness centers and in-store convenient care clinics, with more than 700 locations throughout the country.