Loblaw Companies Ltd. is announcing the launch of HealthWatch for Business, a new drug plan that includes a formulary focused on savings from traditional, non-specialty medications.
The plan, launched by the company’s Shoppers Drug Mart division, is targeting savings of five to 10 per cent in employer and employee costs.
“We understand that employers are facing unprecedented financial pressures due to increasingly complex conditions and more costly therapies,” Mark Rolnick, vice-president of payor partnerships and plan sponsor innovation at Shoppers Drug Mart, said in a release. Savings from traditional drugs will create room in the plan “to afford the growth and innovation of specialty medications,” he added.
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Shoppers started using a similar plan for its own corporate employees five years ago, Rolnick said. Participating employers’ plan members will receive support from the company’s patient contact centre to improve their adherence to medications for chronic conditions. The plan also offers support at the pharmacy counter.
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