Retrospective analysis of estimated cost avoidance following pharmacist-provided medication therapy management services

Abstract

Objective: To compare the estimated cost avoidance (ECA) of pharmacist-provided medication therapy management (MTM) services among common disease states encountered in community pharmacy practice.

Design: Retrospective analysis.

Setting: Nine community pharmacies in North Carolina.

Patients: Three hundred and sixty-four patients who are 65 years of age or older, a Medicare Part D beneficiary and a North Carolina resident.

Interventions: An MTM pharmacist-provider conducted medication reviews to eligible patients between July 2009 and October 2009. For each encounter, patient interventions, pharmacist recommendations, and ECA were recorded.

Main outcome measure: ECA.

Results: In 9 pharmacy locations, 634 MTM interventions were documented during the study period. The ECA in a 4-month period yielded approximately $494 000. Comprehensive medication reviews, new prescription counseling and appropriate medication administration, and technique counseling made up nearly two-thirds of interventions. Overall, the probability that an MTM intervention would result in an ECA greater than $0 was .35.

Conclusions: Pharmacist-provided MTM effectively reduced costs associated with patient medication use. Such interventions reduced costs in overall health care specifically in the areas of cardiovascular, gastroesophageal reflux disease, pulmonary, and diabetes groups.

Keywords: community pharmacy; estimated cost avoidance; medication therapy management.