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County staff report lower medical claims, pharmacy program building enrollment
Summary
County benefits staff reported medical claims running about 8% below last year and prescriptions down 4%; county-run pharmacy mail and curbside pickup services are being expanded and will take months to realize savings on high-cost specialty drugs.
Mister Wilkerson, presenting the employee benefits update at the Feb. 11 Oklahoma County Budget Evaluation Team meeting, said medical claims are running below last year and the county pharmacy program is beginning to show increased utilization.
"Medical's 8% under where we were last year at this point," Wilkerson said, adding that prescriptions are down roughly 4% from the same period last fiscal year. "Overall, we netted out. We're about 4% under $665,000."
Wilkerson described efforts to expand the county pharmacy’s use, including mailed delivery, curbside pickup and text notifications when orders are ready. He said the program excludes certain controlled substances and some specialty drugs; for very high-cost, GLP-1–class medications, the county pharmacy will need several months of steady pharmacy volume to negotiate lower purchase prices.
County staff said outreach has included mailers and email notices to employees. Discussion among committee members emphasized that converting more employees to the county pharmacy could reduce long-term premium pressure by lowering third-party pharmacy margins.
Ending — Staff said they will continue to monitor claims and pharmacy uptake and to follow up with periodic reminders to departments and employees.
