Advocates for a North Carolina Prescription Drug
Assistance Program
We have also worked with a coalition of statewide organizations and community-based agencies - Advocates for a North Carolina Prescription Drug Assistance Program - to create a statewide safety net for seniors who need more assistance than the basic Medicare drug benefit provides. Our efforts with other advocates across the state and elected officials have helped make NCRx a reality in North Carolina. NCRx helps seniors with limited incomes pay their monthly premiums for Medicare Part D coverage. The Advocates coalition also successfully pushed for creation of ChecKmeds NC, a state program that reimburses pharmacists for providing free or nearly free medication therapy management to North Carolina seniors 65 or older who are enrolled in a Medicare Prescription Drug Plan. Senior PharmAssist and its partners have pressed for the continuation and enhancement of NCRx and ChecKmeds NC - both of which were set to expire last year - and those efforts paid off for North Carolina seniors. In 2009, the NC Health and Wellness Trust Fund announced continued funding for both programs for the next few years. To learn more about our position regarding these two valuable initiatives please click here .
The National Committee for Responsive Philanthropy released a report in May 2009 examining the impact of our collaborative efforts with the "Advocates." The report, which focuses on 13 North Carolina organizations, is available as a free download from the NCRP's Web site. Among its key findings: for every dollar invested in the advocacy, organizing, and civic engagement efforts of nonprofits studied, North Carolina residents reaped $89 in benefits.
You can learn more about the history and achievements of Advocates for a North Carolina Prescription Drug Assistance Program by clicking here. And to read a list of its member agencies, please click here.