New York State to offer low-income, disabled residents prescription drug discount cards

New York state officials on Monday announced a statewide prescription drug discount card program for residents with disabilities, people who are too young to qualify for Medicare and those whose incomes are too high to qualify for Medicaid, the Rochester Democrat and Chronicle reports.

The New York Prescription Saver Cards program targets residents ages 50 to 64, as well as residents of any age who have been classified as disabled by the Social Security Administration. To qualify, residents must have annual incomes at or below $35,000 if they are single, or at or below $50,000 if they are married.

Gov. David Paterson (D) said that he believes 35,000 residents would be eligible for the program. He added that he hopes the program reduces the cost of generic medications by an average of 30% to 40% and by at least 25% for brand-name medications. More than 2,500 pharmacies are participating in the program statewide. Officials said the state is using its bargaining power to secure discounts with pharmaceutical companies and additional discounts could be introduced as more drugmakers participate in the program.

The program was approved as a part of the 2008-2009 state budget, and it will be implemented on April 1. State lawmakers said they would consider expanding the program during this year's session (Matthews, Rochester Democrat and Chronicle, 3/24).