Prescription Savings in The Villages

Affordable Prescription Solutions with Visory Health

In this episode of 'Open Forum in The Villages, Florida,' host Mike Roth introduces Alexandra Robertson, Senior Vice President of Growth at Visory Health. Alexandra discusses the company's efforts to reduce prescription costs through their innovative discount card. The podcast emphasizes the increasing challenges seniors face with rising healthcare costs and the importance of transparency and affordable alternatives. Alexandra explains how Visory Health simplifies the process for consumers by offering a discount card that does not require monthly coupons. She also touches on the distribution methods, coverage, and specific benefits for different demographics, including younger families and those who fall in the Medicare coverage gap. The discussion includes the limitations and opportunities of current healthcare plans, the importance of preventative care, and alternative resources for more affordable medications.

00:00 Introduction to the Open Forum
00:27 Support the Podcast
01:39 Interview with Alexandra Robertson
02:23 Understanding Visory Health
05:38 Challenges in Prescription Costs
07:06 Medicare and Prescription Plans
16:21 Alternative Resources for Prescription Savings
24:00 Advice for Villages Residents
27:34 Conclusion and Supporter Shoutouts

Transcript

Prescription Savings in The Villages

ALexandra Robertson - Visory Health

[00:00:00] Dolores: Welcome to the Open Forum in The Villages, Florida. In this show, we talk to leaders of clubs and interesting folks who live here in The Villages to get perspectives of what is happening here in The Villages, Florida. We are a listener supported podcast. There will be shout outs for supporters in episodes.

[00:00:25] Mike Roth: This is Mike Roth. Thanks for listening. And listeners, I'm thrilled to share with you this podcast, which is my passion project for you. This podcast brings you knowledge, inspiration, and a lot of things that people need to know about the villages and the people living here. Be sure to hit the follow button to get the newest episode each week.

Creating this podcast is a labor of love. Even though it demands more time, I can easily spare. Now, here's where you come in. You can help us keep the podcast alive and thriving. How? By becoming a supporter. The easy way for you to support us is to visit our podcast webpage Open forum in thevillagesflorida. com and click on the supporter button at the top of the page or the purple supporter box. Even a small donation of three to ten dollars a month makes a big difference and you can cancel your subscription at any time. Your support means the world to us. Stay curious, stay inspired, and keep those headphones on.

I hope everyone enjoys today's show.

[00:01:39] Mike Roth: This is Mike Roth on Open Forum in The Villages, Florida. I'm here today with Alexandra Robertson, who is the Senior Vice President of Growth at Visory Health, a leading prescription discount card, transforming how everyone, including veterans and families, can 

reduce their prescription costs. Alexandra draws from her experience in the venture capital backed Silicon Valley startups. She has been recognized for 

enhancing positive change and access to affordable prices. Thanks for joining me, Alexandra. 

[00:02:21] Alexandra Roberson: Thanks for having me, Mike. 

[00:02:23] Mike Roth: Why don't you tell our listeners a little bit about Visory Health and how long that's been around because until recently, I never even heard of it. 

[00:02:32] Alexandra Roberson: Yes. So Visory has been around since.

It's March 1st of 2022, so about two and a half years old, a little older. But really we set out to make medications accessible and affordable for everyone. And over those last two and a half years, we've become a leading prescription discount card. And really it's because, healthcare is something that really impacts everyone on a daily basis.

And especially as not only insurance costs rise or prescription costs rise, people are looking for alternative solutions. And I think part of the reason that we've been so successful so far is because we really do try to keep things simple for our consumers. We don't require coupons, for every month or for every medication.

We simply try to offer a great price. They can, all they need to do is show our discount card to the pharmacist when they're picking up their prescription. And so we try to just keep it really easy for people. And so that's really been our goal is to. Get out there and make people aware of the options that they have available to them.

[00:03:52] Mike Roth: Now, how do you distribute your guards? 

[00:03:56] Alexandra Roberson: Yes. So there's a couple of different ways. One is by going to our website, they can ask for a physical card. And then the most common way is really what we call a digital prescription card. So we have an app that you can download, whether you have an Android or an iPhone.

And then it sits within that application so that all they have to do, and it doesn't change, right? So it's, we always offer a great price so they're not having to worry about getting a coupon, which other discount cards do. They require you to get the latest coupon in advance of going to the pharmacy. So once you have the application or you've asked us to send you a physical card, then you have your own Visory discount card that is free to use for you, your whole family, Everyone. 

[00:04:47] Mike Roth: Is there a cost to obtain one.

[00:04:50] Alexandra Roberson: It is completely free for anyone to use, and it doesn't expire, it doesn't need to be, quote, activated it's already live, and you just need to show up to the pharmacist. We work directly with pharmacies across the nation, so we've got over 36, 000 today where it's available for The Villages, it's Publix, it's CVS, Walgreens, those types of pharmacies where they can go and simply show the card to that pharmacist.

If they'd like to use that. 

[00:05:16] Mike Roth: As I looked it up on your website, my pharmacy was covered and sure enough, it was. 

[00:05:22] Alexandra Roberson: Yes. Good. 

[00:05:23] Mike Roth: And interestingly, the pharmacist there, the years has offered me a different brand pharmacy card than yours. So I'm going to pick up yours to make sure that I get the best deal.

[00:05:36] Alexandra Roberson: Yeah, we love that. Yep. 

[00:05:38] Mike Roth: Yeah. What are some of the biggest challenges, that senior citizens face when it comes to managing prescription drug costs? 

[00:05:45] Alexandra Roberson: So I think some of the biggest challenges right now are around, transparency and pricing. There was a study that JAMA, which is a peer reviewed publication, came out with maybe a year and a half, two years ago that said a growing number of older adults can't afford their prescription medications with one in every five adults, 65 and up.

Either skipping, delaying, or taking less medication because of cost. So I think that is a really large challenge that we've seen. And then the other piece, I would say, is really understanding your benefits like Medicare Part D, if you have it right now. And yes, this will change in 2025, coverage gap that we call.

The donut hole. Once you go past your initial coverage phase, which I believe is around 540 fives for 2024, you then have to pay 25% of the cost of your medications up to $8,000 in 2024. So in one year 

[00:06:53] Mike Roth: In 2025. 'cause you where we are today. I understand the maximum that a senior could pay out for drugs is 2,000 if it's an FDA approved drug. Is that true? 

[00:07:04] Alexandra Roberson: Correct. Yeah. So what's going to happen, what's happening now is that in 2025 you have a higher initial phase of $2,000 as opposed to the $545 limit, but then you immediately enter that catastrophic phase for the rest of that year. Once you. Meet that deductible, 

[00:07:25] Mike Roth: Meet that threshold, 

[00:07:27] Alexandra Roberson: Right?

And then you'll pay a much smaller co-insurance for the brand or generic drugs. But what I would also say is $2,000 can still be depending on, the types of medications and how many of them you're taking, which, We know just as you age, it tends to be higher, right? Then when you're younger, you may still not reach that $2,000 though.

So I think then what everyone who's listening should do is try to understand what are the medications that are for chronic conditions that they're taking, whether it's daily, that they fill on a regular basis, how much would that be, and if it's not $2,000 and you're not reaching that out of pocket Max, then what I would suggest you do is look to alternatives like Pfizer eHealth, where you may just want to find the cheapest price, right?

If you're not going to reach a $2,000, where then once you hit that, it's much lower, but if you never reach it, it's better maybe for you then just to get a great price for your prescriptions. 

[00:08:27] Mike Roth: Many of the seniors are taking drugs that are advertised on television. As soon as the drug is.

Advertised on television. I feel that the drug is a minimum of $300 a month, whatever it is for whatever condition you have. Am I wrong about that? 

[00:08:42] Alexandra Roberson: A lot of those are branding drugs, so yes, brand names tend to be higher and part of that is the process for them to actually come out and manufacture the drugs.

So another option is always to see is an alternative with a generic prescription available because generics are vastly more affordable than a branding drug. 

[00:09:06] Mike Roth: They're supposed to be. Sometimes they're not much less expensive. I was talking to a prior guest on the show, and he said that he gets his Eloquist from Canada because he saves 1, 000 a year.

If he were to use your card, your program, what would the relative cost be relative to buying it in Canada, which is, to me, somewhat chancy. 

[00:09:29] Alexandra Roberson: That's a good question. I don't know off the top of my head. I can tell you that on average for generics, which is mostly what a prescription discount card is used for, it's used a little bit for brands, but more often than not, it's for generic medications.

And we save on average 80 percent of the cost. Now sometimes depending on the drug, it might be higher. Sometimes it might be lower, but average we save about 80%. 

[00:09:56] Mike Roth: And you're mainly talking about. The drug costs below the $2,000 threshold. 

[00:10:01] Alexandra Roberson: It's irrespective of that. So it's just whatever the drugs, someone or medications that someone might be taking are, if they equal less than $2,000, maybe you want to look for a prescription discount card, like Visory to use that instead of this now Medicare part D, right?

It just depends on what. The drug is and how much you could save using Visory, it'll depend, it'll be different per person and what those chronic conditions are. 

[00:10:28] Mike Roth: But what about those popular and terribly expensive weight loss drugs? Oh, Sam, are you guys covering those? 

[00:10:35] Alexandra Roberson: We do offer, you can use Visory for them.

However, you're not going to see 80 percent because again, those are newer drugs. So those are much higher costs. To fill, so the discount might be slight, but that's a challenging that I can also say, pharmacists who are even having trouble just trying to get the supply for it, right? Because over the last year, it's become very popular.

[00:11:02] Mike Roth: Yeah, very popular. And I guess the drug Kisunla , which was recently approved, are they covered under your program as well? Yeah. 

[00:11:11] Alexandra Roberson: Yeah, we cover thousands of drugs. So any behind the counter medication we offer, it will be pharmacy specific as to whether you can use Visory with it. But as far as what you're able to potentially use Visory with, it would be the FDA approved, I call it behind the counter drugs versus, the over the counter, in front of the pharmacy.

[00:11:31] Mike Roth: So what are the biggest misconceptions that seniors have about healthcare costs and drugs in particular? 

[00:11:37] Alexandra Roberson: I think that's a good question. From what we can see, a lot of retirees may believe they I don't have a lot of options to lower their costs, but I think there are ways to optimize health care spending by doing things like reviewing your plans annually during open enrollment and comparing plans.

You don't always have to stick with the same one. Plans are changing. Year over year. So it can be helpful to look at what other options and plans are out there for you to use. Also, making sure you're utilizing your preventative care benefit. I know that's a big for a lot of folks as they get older, making sure you're going to the doctor, you're doing frequent visits preventatively.

So if something's starting to happen, we can catch it early because that will always give you a better health outcome for other folks. It could be even things like exploring Medicaid or pharmacy assistance programs, if you have limited incomes, those are all available to people. So it's not just because you're on a specific Medicare plan that you have to stick with that for a year.

As you, there are other options that you can evaluate in that open enrollment period if you want to. 

[00:12:52] Mike Roth: I get the books in the mail and they're about 600 pages long. 

[00:12:56] Alexandra Roberson: That's right. 

[00:12:57] Mike Roth: Although you can tell for sure what drugs you were taking last year, you can't predict which drugs you're going to be prescribed in the coming year, at least I haven't figured out how to do that.

Is there a way to do that, to figure out the best Medicare Part D plan? 

[00:13:16] Alexandra Roberson: You, that is tough because the, most of the medications, a lot of them should be covered, but that is a, it's tough, I think, to predict, it's a tough question, you, , Mike. . It's tough to predict the future, I think, in terms of what could happen.

Making sure you have a good Medicare Part D, or do you want to look at Medicare Advantage Part C, that maybe is more encompassing of things as well, just to make sure that you are covered for maybe an unforeseen circumstance. But that's why, I think also shopping around for your prescriptions, using Visory, also you can look at different pharmacies to see what makes the most sense for you.

But. Yeah, that's a tough one. I know they have a Medicare plan finder tool and I can try and send that to you after this where you can check to see which plan is going to give you the best coverage for your current medications, so you could, you can try to see, maybe if you think something for the fall of the year, you could try and look those up just to see, but they do, they 

that.

[00:14:21] Mike Roth: The other drug cost that most seniors wind up with is. The over the counter vitamins, minerals, supplements that are recommended to them in a bottle of supplement, could cost more than the prescription statin drug, so it's a crazy thing. And those are not covered under your plan, are they?

The over the counter ones? 

[00:14:44] Alexandra Roberson: We do offer some over the counter, but that will be pharmacy specific. So we recommend looking on our website or within our app to see If there is something that is covered just so you can, again, because we're always trying to educate the folks before they come to the counter.

So if they want to know what maybe a supplement would look like that may be available to them based on where they live and the pharmacy that they may go to. 

[00:15:13] Mike Roth: Let's take a quick break and listen to a Alzheimer's tip from Dr. Craig Curtis. 

So if one of our listeners want to go to one of your seminars that you put on regularly, how do they make a reservation to do that? 

[00:15:25] Dr. Craig Curtis: The easiest way is to go to our website, which is www. craigcurtismd. com, or call our office. At 3 5 2 505 2 5 2. Thanks, Dr. Curtis. Thank you, Mike. 

[00:15:40] Warren: With over 20 years of experience studying brain health, Dr.

Curtis's goal is to educate the village's community on how to live a longer, healthier life. To learn more, visit his website, craig curtis md.com, or call 3 5 2 5 0 0 5 2 5 2 to attend a free seminar with over 20 years of experience studying brain health.

[00:16:00] Mike Roth: Thank you, Dr. Curtis. Alexandra, share with us. knowledge about some alternative resources that retirees can tend to use to save money on prescription drugs? 

[00:16:11] Alexandra Roberson: Yes. So some alternative resources for saving on prescription drugs are really going to be a couple of things. We touched on this a little bit earlier in the program, but one is going to be if your prescriptions aren't covered or perhaps they're really expensive.

And again, this is maybe a new chronic condition where now you're required to take this, you On a monthly basis, or you're going to need prescriptions monthly, you can consider asking your doctor if a generic exists, there are generic alternatives coming up every so often that the brand timeline expires.

We're now able to offer a generic where it's effectively got the same medication in there. So you can use that as an option to be more affordable. And then depending on the drug, there are, Pharmacy assistance programs, we call them PAPs pharmacy assistance programs for those who have limited incomes, if it's a specific drug, so they can go online and see if they would be eligible and if their drug is eligible for that to be covered as well to help offset some of the costs.

And then, of course, prescription discount cards like Viceroy Health, where you're able to try and save on mostly generic medications that you may be taking. Daily or monthly for those chronic conditions where you can't save. 

[00:17:31] Mike Roth: Seniors save by shopping around at different pharmacies. Are the prices for these prescription drugs different enough to make it worthwhile?

I'm not talking 50 cents a month different, but can you save 30 or 40 a month by moving from a Kroger pharmacy to a Walgreens pharmacy or from a Walgreens to a Kroger? 

[00:17:50] Alexandra Roberson: It's definitely possible. There that you could, depending again, always, I asterisk all of this, depending on the medication.

It'll be different, right? But just because you see one pharmacy price at one pharmacy, that does not mean it's the same across all the pharmacies in the U. S. So there may be different prices and they could be as little as 50 cents and they can be much higher. I believe when we did our survey, a lot of people between, 35 and up are willing to even move a prescription if they can get a $5 savings.

So if it's not too far out of your way, or if maybe it's for instance, a Publix or a Kroger where they also have grocery available there, so you're shopping while they're filling your prescription and you'd rather, switch it so that you can all in one. 

[00:18:38] Mike Roth: Yeah. I spent many years in Cincinnati and sometimes finding the right pharmacy was difficult here in The Villages.

It seems you drive down the street, every shopping center has a pharmacy. Is your card program also honored in what I'm going to call mom and pop pharmacies where it's not part of a chain? 

[00:18:59] Alexandra Roberson: We do have some mom and pop pharmacies. I would say. There are thousands of them. We're not available at all of them, but we call them, independent pharmacies where maybe they have one location or they have a couple locations.

We do offer and work with some of them. So that is a potential that the app and the website are really the best places if you're. No matter where you're listening to see if there is a local pharmacy or if it's local and it's a mom and pop, as you say, you can, your pharmacist, they know you, so you can ask them if that's something that they accept, right?

[00:19:37] Mike Roth: What about durable medical equipment? Everything from a back brace to a walker, sometimes they are prescription. Would they be covered by your card? 

[00:19:48] Alexandra Roberson: We're for right now, it's really just prescription medications. So that's going to be the area of focus that we're trying to solve for. Because again, we've got an increase in family health insurance of about 7%, you've got drug costs increasing about 15 percent on average.

So we're trying to alleviate that. The ability of people not picking up their medications or earlier for someone to skip or delay taking a medication, that's not going to give them the best health outcome, right? We want to keep them on that medication as it's prescribed. So in order to do that, we're trying to really give folks the best health outcome and to keep them doing what they love.

And so for right now, we're focused on prescription medications. 

[00:20:36] Mike Roth: So insulin, what is the outlook on insulin costs for 2025? First of all, is insulin covered by your program? 

[00:20:45] Alexandra Roberson: We do offer insulin. Yes, that's a prescription that would be covered. 

In general, I know they're going to have the 35 dollar monthly cap where Medicare beneficiaries don't need to pay more than that for their, it'll be covered by part D or through part B with an insulin pump, but it is still available to use, with Visory.

And that would be part of the out of pocket cap, right? 

[00:21:10] Mike Roth: If someone needed an EpiPen. Every other month or so that would be covered because it's a prescription product. 

[00:21:16] Alexandra Roberson: Yes. 

[00:21:17] Mike Roth: Okay. Good. I understand that. Now, what about who have been buying their drugs from Handler? What would you say to them? 

[00:21:26] Alexandra Roberson: That's a great question.

People are looking for alternatives for more affordable medication, so I can see the draw to getting something from a cheaper place. I would also say, though, that You want to know that you have the medication that you're going to need when you need it. And so it's a real thing being able to go down the street to your local pharmacy and pick it up.

There's something to be said about that when you've got it in your hand and you're walking out with it. So I would say it's worth at least checking for an alternative, like the Visory Health app or website to see if you can just go down the street and get it filled when you need it. Thanks. Versus trying to plan and then hope it doesn't get delayed with shipments and all sort of those sort of things that are maybe a little more outside of your control.

You can have that peace of mind. I think that's important. 

[00:22:25] Mike Roth: Frankly, I've always been worried about the quality. Are you actually going to get the same pill from a Canadian pharmacy that you're going to get from your local Walgreens or Publix? 

[00:22:36] Alexandra Roberson: When, and I don't know enough about where you can buy it in Canada to, to know whether that's sure or not, but I could certainly see that being a consideration.

[00:22:47] Mike Roth: Is there any special advice you'd like to give to our listeners about their healthcare costs and prescription costs? 

[00:22:54] Alexandra Roberson: I think the big things are, understanding your coverage options is important and making sure you're fully aware of the plans that are available to you and what's covered.

Okay. For instance, just original Medicare, and you'd like to add Medicare Part D during open enrollment, or you'd like to start using Medicare Advantage, making sure you know what is included in each of those pieces of Medicare, as well as prevention, so making sure you're doing preventative care, I think that's really key, as well as comparing your plans piece.

Annually during that open enrollment period, which typically is around middle of October through early December. And then when it comes to medications at, you can look at different pharmacies to see where you'd like to fill your prescription drugs. And then if it makes sense to use Visory Health prescription card when you go and pick it up.

[00:23:50] Mike Roth: Can you give some special advice to our village residents? Who are less than the Medicare eligibility age, okay, and they may have left their former employer so they no longer have that coverage. How does your card plan fit in for them? 

[00:24:07] Alexandra Roberson: So I would say that they could probably even find more benefit with Visory Health.

So earlier this year, we conducted a survey that found 48 percent of respondents over 55. I've been forced to choose between prescriptions and essential bills. And then if you were 35 to 54, 45 percent of them face similar decisions. And so you can still absolutely benefit from Visory Health with your prescriptions and when it comes to saving money on your prescriptions.

And that's why we're working to help people understand the alternatives that they have. Because a lot of them, so you. You have to bridge, you're trying to figure out how to bridge that gap. So if you no longer have maybe employer health care, but you're too young for Medicare, then you want to try and make sure again, you're getting great prescription prices when you need them.

So I would say that Visory help is a really great resource, especially in that gap. 

[00:25:12] Mike Roth: And for families, whether it's a husband and wife, or we have a lot of young families here in The Villages area, because they have special neighborhoods for families. Do they need one account with Visory or do they have to have an account for each member of the family?

[00:25:28] Alexandra Roberson: They really just need one card. So there's no account creation process, which is why I think it's so great For really everyone in The Villages, you just need to download the app to get that card, but that card does not change from person to person. So anyone can use it. And especially if you're a family or you're maybe in that 35 to 54 bucket.

We think this is a really great resource because , a lot of people, I call that sort of the sandwich generation. So oftentimes maybe you're taking care of kids as well as your parents. And so we're trying to, again, give you another resource because a lot of folks in that bucket may have employer health care coverage.

But what's happened over the last couple of decades is that there's been a shift to high deductible health care plans. So a lot of those folks who are on a high deductible health care plan, About 78 percent never meet that out of pocket deductible. So again, you're trying to figure out then if you're in the majority, who's not going to need it, how can you just get when you need a medication, which may be less frequent, you just want a great price, right?

So we're trying to make sure that is available to them. And then we also have, our app now has a version where if you need it in Spanish, our app is available in Spanish. And so I know we've got folks who's maybe their grandparents or their parents, they only speak Spanish and they're able to now use this app.

Very seamlessly understand what medication they're trying to find, what the cost is, where they can go and they can use that as well. 

[00:27:03] Mike Roth: That makes sense. Again, what is the website that they should go to get a card and set that up? 

[00:27:11] Alexandra Roberson: It is Visory Health.com. V-I-S-O-R-Y-H-E-A-L-T H.com. 

[00:27:20] Mike Roth: Thanks for being with us today, Alexandra.

[00:27:23] Alexandra Roberson: Thank you, Mike.

[00:27:24] Dolores: Remember, our next episode will be released next Friday at 9 a. m. Should you want to become a major supporter of the show or have questions, please contact us at mike at rothvoice dot com. This is a shout out for supporters Tweet Coleman, Ed Williams, Duane Roemmrich, Paul Sorgen, Kathy Loving, and Dr. Craig Curtis at K2 in the Villages.

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