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Caremark RX Inc

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Caremark Rx is one of the big three pharmacy benefit managers, companies that supposedly save consumers and, not least of all, their insurers big bucks on prescriptions. But these savings, if indeed they exist, all too often come out of the consumer's hide, as the complaints in this section demonstrate.

Roy of Bound Brook, NJ August 17, 2008

Roy of Bound Brook NJ (08/17/08)
1. Caremark seems to have a policy of changing the quantity in a prescription. For example, my wife mailed an rx for a 3 month supply of taclomex which should have been 3 tubes. However, for some reason Caremark faxed a letter to the doctor and and asked him to reduce the number of tubes from 3 to 2. Caremark's reasoning was that since it was a refill then the full amount was not longer required. Never mind that the ecema was increasing rather then decreasing. It's ironic that if our local pharmacy was is the same situation they would have contacted my wife, Caremark has stated that they will NOT contact the patient.

2. A different example of the Caremarks quality of service it that they will publish a date on their website when a refill can be refilled. But, that date is not always accurate because they have cancelled several orders without notifing us. When this situation was finally resoved (it has happened several times this year), the medication was finally delivered but usually a week late. Caremark could not explain why this happens (it is always someone else's fault).

1. We paid for three tubes but only received two. 2. One of the medication was imitrex so my wife had to suffer several days with migraines until her medication arrived.

Kelley of Louisville, OH August 15, 2008

Kelley of Louisville OH (08/15/08)
Where do I start? I have had Caremark refuse to fill prescriptions, change prescriptions, mail them to the wrong address, send the incorrect medication, fail to return prescriptions, call the doctor for the prognosis, charge more for the mail order prescription than it cost over the counter. I am a diabetic & I have a heart stent. My doctor inserted a medicated stent & now I'm supposed to take Plavix on a daily basis for the rest of my life.

At this point in time I owe a balance of 166. I'm forced to order prescriptions in 3 month increments. I called in a prescription for Plavix the other night. I received a call the next day telling me they were holding my prescription until I sent them a payment, because filling the Plavix prescription would set me over the AT&T determined balance cap of 200 by 2.00. Over the years, this company has sent me the wrong insulin, sent me defective syringes (a bag had busted needles in it), sent prescriptions to my home address when they were specifically requested to send them to my work location, failed to return written prescriptions to me when they decide that they are not going to fill them, changed prescriptions marked DAW to generic without contacting my doctor (I checked with the doctor).

In the case of my parents, they called my mother & told her they were not going to fill her prescription because they didn't think she was taking it as she was supposed to and changed another one of her prescriptions without consulting with her doctor (she verified this with her doctor). They also called her doctor & asked them what her prognosis was for a certain condition (a violation of the privacy laws).

The new tactic is now claiming that they never talked to anyone from the Dr's office when the nurse has called in a prescription for a patient. They are also claiming that they never received the fax from the doctor's office even though the doctor's office has the fax receipt showing it was received. At one point in time Caremark refused to allow a prescription to be filled over the counter for my son, because it been filled over the counter twice. Despite the fact that the medication was a psychiatric prescription & not to be stopped without the direct supervision of a doctor, Caremark refused to allow it to be filled over the counter,

I now have to buy most of my diabetic supplies over the counter as needed. This takes money that could have gone to make payments on the outstanding bill owed to Caremark. If I can't afford the medication over the counter (i.e. the Plavix, not to mention the cholesterol meds) I do without. As stated I'm a diabetic (going on 44 years) w/a medicated stent. Not a good combination. Physically, I could be a walking time bomb, waiting for a heart attack to occur. I also have PAD, due to the long-term diabetes. Plavix could ease this or slow down the progression. I'm having to go back to my endocrinologist to see if the drug reps have dropped off any samples of the one type of insulin I'm on because Caremark won't send it if I have a balance too close to the cap & I can't afford to pay 80/bottle.

Gg of Slc, UT August 1, 2008

Gg of Slc UT (08/01/08)
I am to get three months of insulin at a time through Caremark mail-order pharmacy, and the pharmacy only sends me one month's worth--continually. My Rx is written 35u tid (three times a day), the math comes out to 105units/day. Each bottle holds 1000 units and lasts me about 9 days. In a 3-month period I go through 10 bottles of insulin and even when I send in a hard copy written 35u tid, I am sent only 35u/day. I just sent in a new Rx for 10 bottles (which I photocopied) and they sent me back 4 wqrm bottles (insulin needs to be kept cold or its no good). I would love to talk to an attorney or some AG about prosecuting them for meddling with prescriptions.

Lots of time on the telephone with pharmacists that I can only assume are lying to me about hard copies and faxes. Borrowing and begging with other diabetics to get the insulin I need to cover my needs, and high blood sugar which leads to organ damage, trouble with vision and, unfortunately, amputation, (one leg's gone, I'm hoping to keep the other).

Bobbette of Jacksonville, FL July 24, 2008

Bobbette of Jacksonville FL (07/24/08)
I am a retiree of AT&T since 1990 with full benefits. In the past, I have had no trouble using my prescription benefits. In 2007, Caremark started handling our prescription claims. I am pretty healthy and have not had to have any prescriptions filled since Caremark took over. I am 65 years old. My mother, who is 86, is on Caremark also as my second class dependent.

Earlier this year, I tried to call Caremark about a price and found out I was not in the system. After about 6 weeks and much stress and time calling, they finally got me back into the system. My mother had no problems up until now and got prescriptions filled regularly until this week. She tried to get one filled and found out she was no longer in the system. She asked me to call and I found out I was not in the system either. So, that makes twice this year I was dropped from the system. My mother had to pay full price, 75 for the prescription with a promise of a refund once she was back in the system. We are not back in yet.

This is causing me and my mother a lot of stress, wondering if we will need more meds that we cannot get without paying full price for. Being on Social Security, it makes it especially hard to have to pay full price when you were planning on using your prescription plan to get meds filled. I feel like once this year maybe was a fluke and understandable. But twice in about 6 months and then my elderly mother not being able to use her card is just unacceptable. What happens if I am sick or hospitalized and need important meds and cannot make phone calls to get back into a system that drops you several times a year. By the way, we never received any notice of any kind that we were being dropped from the system.

Having to pay full price for the meds because we were dropped from the rolls for no reason. Stess trying to get back on. Takes much time and many phone calls. Fear of not being able to get needed meds in the future if we are going to be dropped from the rolls several times a year as has already happened.

Rm of Tamarac, FL July 14, 2008

Rm of Tamarac FL (07/14/08)
I am currently taking fertility medication to try and get pregnant. Unfortunately I have to order my fertility thru mail order from Caremark. The fertility medication must be taken on specific days and times. Caremark sent me my fertility medication which was a vile but not syringe was given to me so I could take the medication. No instructions were included listing side effects and my name was spelled incorrectly. The blatant disregard to detail in handling prescriptions is disgusting and unacceptable.

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