Frequently Asked Questions (F.A.Q.’s)

Below are some of the questions we hear most often from new or prospective customers. The questions are in categories so it’s easier for you to find the information you want. Click on a category in the list below, and it will take you to that section of questions. If you have any trouble finding the answers you’re looking for, please call our pharmacy at 888-600-9692.

GETTING STARTED / SIGNING UP/ TRANSFERRING PRESCRIPTIONS

MEDICATION SAFETY, ACCURACY AND PATIENT HEALTH

WORKING WITH YOUR DOCTOR(S) / MEDICATIONS CHANGES / OTHER SERVICES

COST / INSURANCE COVERAGE / FINANCIAL CONSIDERATIONS

TRAVELING WITH YOUR MEDICATIONS

ACCESSIBILITY / OPENING THE PACKETS

GETTING STARTED / SIGNING UP/ TRANSFERRING PRESCRIPTIONS

How do I get started? How do you get all my prescriptions? It’s easier than you might think – AccuPax handles almost everything. Click on HOW TO ORDER for complete details on the sign-up process. All we need is a list of your medications, the name and phone number of the doctor that prescribed the medication and your insurance information (if you have prescription coverage.) That’s it. Once you give us that info, we’ll take it from there. We’ll contact your doctors to get new prescriptions. We’ll also work with your insurance company to ensure coverage, and to coordinate dates so all your prescriptions are on the same 30 day cycle.

Do I have to sign up online? I’m concerned about privacy. Actually, sign-ups are done by phone. Some customers may email, fax or mail some of the information needed for sign-up, but nearly all customers start and finalize their sign-up by speaking with our pharmacy. And if you’re concerned about privacy, rest assured your personal information is not shared with third parties other than to fill orders or to comply with government requirements. Click on HOW TO ORDER or CONTACT US for more information.

MEDICATION SAFETY, ACCURACY AND PATIENT HEALTH

How does AccuPax help protect me from medication errors? The AccuPax service and our special packaging ensures safety and accuracy several ways.

At the Pharmacy

1. Your prescriptions are sorted and packaged using a high-tech, highly accurate computer software system. They are then double and triple checked personally by a Pharmacist and a Pharmacist Technician to ensure you get the right medication at the correct dosage. 2. With one Pharmacist to oversee all your prescriptions, vitamins, supplements and non-prescription drugs we can spot potential problems easily. This includes drug interactions with other prescription or non-prescription drugs or supplements, as well as medications with similar effects prescribed by multiple doctors.

At Home

1. Our special AccuPax packaging helps you take the right pills at the right time, even if you take multiple medications on varying schedules. Each day & time has it’s own packet (or packets if needed,) eliminating confusion over what to take and when. 2. You get the right dose with no concern about accidentally doubling or skipping doses. You never have to ask yourself; “did I take those 2 PM pills yet?” And you don’t have to worry you might be taking an extra dose, or skip a dose just to be sure you don’t take an extra dose. Just check the time and date on the next packet in your box. 3. AccuPax is a safer way to store your medications. Each individual packet is waterproof, eliminating concerns about water or humidity damaging the medications, or about a pill bottle (or worse yet, an entire pill organizer) spilling all over the floor. 4. With AccuPax, it’s easier and safer to adjust your medications. Each packet lists all the medications in it, with visual descriptions. So if your Doctor says to cut your Zocor dose in half, you can easily tell which packet has Zocor and that it’s the small, white, oval tablet.

What’s medication compliance (or medication adherence)? Medication compliance simply means taking your medications exactly as prescribed by your doctor; taking the right drug, in the right dose, at the right time, every time.

Is medication compliance really that important? Absolutely. Improved medication compliance can potentially improve your health and could even save you money! Numerous studies show that by taking your medication exactly as prescribed you can avoid dangerous medical complications, while better managing your disease and it’s symptoms. This can make you more comfortable now, and have a positive impact on long term health. One study found non-compliance in 86% of people on 3 or more medications. This can lead to costly health problems; studies find noncompliance is responsible for up to 40% of nursing home admissions and 10% of all hospital admissions.

WORKING WITH YOUR DOCTOR(S) / MEDICATIONS CHANGES / OTHER SERVICES

Do I need to get my doctor’s permission to use AccuPax? No, but we encourage you to discuss your decision with your doctor. Most doctors are happy to know you’re using a service like AccuPax, which makes it easy to take your medications on time, exactly as they have ordered.

What if my Doctor changes my medication and I need the new one immediately? AccuPax can accommodate even urgent medication changes. If we receive your prescription by 2 PM Eastern time, we will mail it out the same day. Overnight shipping is available. If you must have your prescription the same day, your Doctor may be able to provide you with samples to last a few days. If not, AccuPax will work with a local retail pharmacy and arrange for you to receive a small quantity of the medication. AccuPax will take care of billing and send you the remainder of your prescription immediately. We’ll handle everything.

What if a new condition or a new doctor means I need to adjust several prescriptions? Many of our patients occasionally make multiple changes while fine-tuning to find their best drug regimen. If you’re making many changes to determine the right dose and mix of new medications, you may need more than the options already discussed. With AccuPax, we’ll work with you, to accommodate more frequent changes while your medications are fine-tuned. For example, you and your doctor may opt to have a new medication packaged in a separate bottle for the first month, so you can try out various doses and/or times to find out what’s best for you.

Can you split one of my pills? Yes, if it’s safe to split. We’ll split the pill and put it in your packets with your other medications. Some pills (such as timed-release or extended-release) are not safe to split. In that situation, we’ll work with you and your doctor to determine if you might benefit from switching to a lower dose or even a different delivery method for that medication.

Can AccuPax supply medications other than pills? Yes, AccuPax is a full service pharmacy. We provide inhalers, liquids, creams, patches, Diabetes supplies and any other medication you may need. In fact, we encourage you to get everything from AccuPax. With one Pharmacist to oversee all your prescriptions, plus supplements and non-prescription drugs we can spot potential problems easily, including possible drug interactions.

What about over-the-counter (nonprescription) drugs and nutritional supplements? AccuPax can also handle all your non-prescription medications, vitamins and supplements, and include them in your packets.

What about dealing with my Doctors?

EXISTING PRESCRIPTIONS – We’ll contact your Doctor for a refill when you have an existing prescription about to run out. If you’ve ever gone without a prescription, because you forgot to call in advance for a refill from your doctor, you’ll really like this part of our service. When you’re set up as a new customer, we’ll let your doctors know we’re the pharmacy of record and provide them with the information needed to send all of your prescriptions to us.

NEW PRESCRIPTIONS – We do ask that you help by ensuring any new prescriptions are sent to us. If you receive a prescription for a new medication while you’re at your doctor’s office, just ask them to send it directly to us. If your doctor orders a new prescription based on a phone consultation, please provide him with our contact info, found on your existing AccuPax prescriptions and on the CONTACT US page. Prescriptions may be emailed, phoned, faxed or mailed to us.

CONTROLLED SUBSTANCES – By Federal regulation, a small number of Rx medications (certain levels of “Controlled Substances,”) require that we have the original paper prescription from your doctor. When we contact your doctor for refills on this type of prescription, we’ll allow extra time for mailing.

As an AccuPax customer, how do I contact a pharmacist after hours? When you call after hours, your call goes to an answering service where a real person answers. An AccuPax Pharmacist is available 24 hours a day, 7 days a week and can be paged by the answering service.

COST / INSURANCE COVERAGE / FINANCIAL CONSIDERATIONS

How much is AccuPax? It’s just $15 per month for our special packaging and priority shipping. With prescription coverage, your copay should be the same as at other participating pharmacies. Please CONTACT US if you’d like to confirm that we can take your prescription insurance.

Is AccuPax a type of health insurance plan for prescription drugs? AccuPax is not a health insurance plan; rather, AccuPax makes it easy for you to manage and administer your prescription drugs at no extra cost. If you’re interested in obtaining an individual health insurance plan, you can learn more about health insurance from Health-Insurance.org.

What if I don’t have prescription coverage? Those who buy their medications without insurance coverage will find our prices very competitive. In fact they’re usually 10-30% less than retail pharmacies. Please CONTACT US if you’d like to get a no obligation price quote for your medications.

Do you take my insurance? We participate with most prescription insurance plans including Medicare. Please CONTACT US to verify that we work with your company.

How do I justify spending the extra money for the convenience? $15 a month is reasonable, but in this economy, I’m watching every dime. AccuPax is more than just convenient. You can easily save many times the $15 charge, by reducing your overall health care expenses. To have your medications sorted and organized by a qualified health care professional such as a nurse or home health provider would cost significantly more. Far more expensive, is the cost of continuing to do it yourself, when you consider that one study found non-compliance (any mistake in following directions for medication) in 86% of those on 3 or more medications. This can lead to costly health problems; studies find noncompliance is responsible for up to 40% of nursing home admissions and 10% of all hospital admissions. A long term study of diabetics found those who fail to take medications as directed have almost twice the total annual health care costs of those who take them correctly; $16,498 for those with the worst medication compliance, compared to $8,886 for those with the best medication compliance!

I don’t have prescription coverage, so price is important. I’ve read about ways to save, like discount foreign pharmacies. How does AccuPax compare? Those who have to buy their medications without insurance coverage will find our prices very competitive. In fact they’re usually 10-30% less than retail pharmacies. It’s certainly possible a foreign pharmacy could beat our prices by a few dollars, but we’re confident using AccuPax can have a positive effect on your health and save you far more money on health care costs in the long run.

Can you split one of my pills? Yes, if it’s safe to split. We’ll split the pill and put it in your packets with your other medications. Some pills (such as timed-release or extended-release) are not safe to split. In that situation, we’ll work with you and your doctor to determine if you might benefit from switching to a lower dose or a different delivery method for that medication.

TRAVELING WITH YOUR MEDICATIONS

I travel a lot. Is AccuPax convenient for travel? Yes, its great for anyone on the go – you can grab just the packets needed, whether for a quick weekend or an extended vacation. Also, U.S. Customs suggests that for re-entry into the U.S., prescription medications should be in their “original packaging.” Since AccuPax comes in clear plastic packets, that is considered it’s original packaging. Each packet contains all the necessary information about the pills and because it is clear it’s easy for Customs officials to examine. AccuPax also provides you with print-outs with Rx numbers and detailed information on your medications. For more on re-entering the U.S. with prescriptions, see this article from U.S. Customs and Border Protection. Look under “Medication” on the list you’ll find if you follow that link.

Where can I read more about traveling internationally with prescription drugs? For info on re-entering the U.S. with prescriptions, see: this article from U.S. Customs and Border Protection.. If you have any problems with that link, go to http://www.cbp.gov/, which is the home page for U.S. Customs and Border Protection. Click “Travel” from the menu at the top, then click “U.S. Citizens/Lawful Permanent Residents” from the menu on your left. From the list in the center of the page, choose “Know Before You Go.” Once on the “Know Before You Go” page, scroll most of the way down the page and choose “Prohibited and Restricted Items,” and from that alphabetized list, select “Medications.”

ACCESSIBILITY / OPENING THE PACKETS

I have arthritis, are the packages easy to open? Yes, the packets are designed to open easily; just tear down from the top edge to open the package. Very little hand strength or flexibility is needed. If you would like try a sample packet, just ask – we’d be happy to send you one. See CONTACT US for how to reach us to request a sample.