(NAPSA)—For people concerned about their prescription drug costs, there’s good news! Now, there are a number of options to help you afford the medicines you need. Oneoption is the new Medicare Prescription Drug Plan—Medicare Part D. For the first time, Medicare now offers prescription medication coverage in what has been called the biggest benefits expansion in the program’s history. It’s worth looking into to see if it’s right for you. Another option exists to help under- and uninsured Americans. The Partnership for Prescription Assistance (PPA) is a program that provides a single point of access to more than 475 public and private patient assistance pro- grams that may help patients get the medicines they needfor free or nearly free. The program is sponsored by America’s pharmaceutical research companies working with doctors, pharmacists, health care providers and community groups across the country. The PPA includes more than 180 programs offered by pharmaceutical companies. Over 2,500 different prescription medicines are available from patient assistance programs through the PPA. In fact, PPA makes it even simpler to connect with existing patient assistance programs sponsored by America’s pharmaceutical companies, which filled over 22 million prescriptions for qualified patients in 2004 alone. The pharmaceutical industry is working to get people the medicines they need. Since its launch in April 2005, PPA has matched more than 1.2 million Americans to one or more patient assistance programs. Now, PPA will be even morevisible. The PPA ”Help Is Here Express” bus tour is visiting towns and cities nationwide beginning in January to educate people about assistance programsthat may help. “Millions of Americans already benefit from patient assistance programs, but we know that millions more who maybeeligible have not yet enrolled,” said Mary E. Frank, M.D., President of the American Academy of Family Physicians. “Because of this effort on the part of the pharmaceutical industry to provide a single point of access to patient assistance programs, each patient’s personal physician will find it easier to help them get the medications they need.” Learn more at www.PPARX.org or by calling 1-888-477-2669.
