As most of the nation hunkered down amid the coronavirus pandemic, visits to doctor offices and outpatient clinics plunged. That's helping cause major swings in prescription drug use.
This undated image provided by Express Scripts, shows Dr. Glen Stettin, Sr. Vice President & Chief Innovation Officer at Express Scipts. Express Scripts, a top prescription benefit manager with over 100 million customers, saw big jumps in people getting three-month refills via mail delivery, as people with chronic health problems stocked up early in the crisis. Refills jumped 18% between mid-March and mid-April.
This undated image provided by Express Scripts, shows Dr. Glen Stettin, Sr. Vice President & Chief Innovation Officer at Express Scipts. Express Scripts, a top prescription benefit manager with over 100 million customers, saw big jumps in people getting three-month refills via mail delivery, as people with chronic health problems stocked up early in the crisis. Refills jumped 18% between mid-March and mid-April.
The Associated Press discussed the changes with Dr. Glen Stettin, who oversees trend and formulary management at Express Scripts, which is owned by health insurer Cigna.Q: When did changes in prescription-filling patterns start? A: The shifts began around Feb. 15, and they peaked the week ending March 15, when the stay-at-home orders started to go into effect.A: Those declined by roughly a third before bottoming out in mid-April. People aren’t getting checkups, so they’re not being diagnosed with conditions like high blood pressure, high cholesterol and diabetes, which have silent symptoms. There’s also been a drop in people being diagnosed with cancer.
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