Help is on the way for free drugs

Thursday, June 22, 2006 | 7:13 a.m.

A mobile assistance program that could help as many as one in three Nevadans without insurance get free or low-cost prescription drugs is coming to Las Vegas on Friday.

The "Help is Here Express" bus will stop at Southern Hills Hospital and Medical Center on Friday and provide qualified applicants access to more than 475 programs that offer financial assistance for prescription drugs.

The bus, sponsored by the Partnership for Prescription Assistance, travels the country educating people about the programs and helping them find out whether they qualify.

Ken Johnson of the Pharmaceutical Research and Manufacturers of America said drug companies have offered prescription assistance for years, but it was a daunting task to find the right programs.

"In the past, if you were a person with multiple needs, you might have to contact 15, 20, or even 30 programs to find out what was available to you," he said. "This brings all of the programs together in a one-stop source."

Most people without prescription drug insurance and whose annual income is less than twice the national poverty level (about $36,000 for a family of four) should qualify for assistance, he said.

Many of the programs are sponsored by pharmaceutical companies, but more than 1,300 groups are now part of the prescription assistance alliance, including the NAACP and the American Cancer Society.

Since the alliance started in 2005, 2.3 million people have gotten prescription assistance, including 15,000 in Nevada.

In 2004, the last year for which figures are available, the U.S. Census Bureau reported that 400,000 Nevadans did not have health insurance.

Johnson estimates at least 150,000 Nevada residents could qualify for assistance through one of the programs.

By the end of this year, two "Help is Here Express" buses will have traveled to 500 cities in all 50 states.

The buses have computers and phones on board, so potential applicants can find out right away whether they are eligible. There are also assistants available to help with applications, and the phone operators speak 165 different languages.

The AARP reports that brand-name prescription drug prices rose 6.2 percent in the first quarter of this year, the highest increase in six years.