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Delmarva Foundation Implements Medication
Therapy Management Program in Maryland and DC
Local Quality Improvement Organization is part
of national effort to improve health of Medicare beneficiaries

Easton, Maryland, September 26, 2007 – Quality Improvement Organizations (QIOs) across the country are working in partnership with Medicare Part D prescription drug plans (PDPs) and Medicare Advantage plans (MA-PDs) to improve the quality of prescription drug therapy for Medicare beneficiaries. Delmarva Foundation, Medicare’s QIO for Maryland and the District of Columbia, implemented a program aimed at helping Medicare beneficiaries use prescription drugs more appropriately and effectively at their local pharmacies.

Through collaboration between Medi-CareFirst BlueCross BlueShield, University of Maryland School of Pharmacy, Howard University School of Pharmacy, and Delmarva Foundation, this program seeks to improve the safety and quality of prescription drug therapy via use of medication therapy management services (MTMS) in community-based pharmacies. MTMS focuses on improving patients’ understanding of the medications they are taking and assessing patients’ medications for appropriateness, as well as any potential side effects of their prescriptions.

Delmarva’s collaboration was unique across the nation in that it involved local schools of pharmacy and targeted actions of community-based pharmacists.

“This initiative is win-win for providers, Medi-CareFirst, pharmacists and especially patients. Medicare beneficiaries have been able to take advantage of the knowledge and expertise of community pharmacists to help them understand their medications and to take more control of managing their own health,” said Carmen Tyler Winston, Vice President, Delmarva Foundation. “In addition to providing increased access to prescription drug coverage, this program helps create a higher quality of care for Medicare beneficiaries in Maryland and the District of Columbia who are taking prescription medications.“

State by state details of how other QIOs are working in partnership with Medicare Part D prescription drug plans (PDPs) and Medicare Advantage plans (MA-PDs) to improve the quality of prescription drug therapy for Medicare beneficiaries are reported in a Supplement to the July/August Journal of Managed Care Pharmacy. http://amcp.org/data/jmcp/July%20B%20Supplement.pdf 

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About Delmarva Foundation
Delmarva Foundation is a national, not-for-profit organization dedicated to improving healthcare quality in over 20 states. Since 1973, Delmarva has assisted in improving care in hospitals, nursing homes, home health agencies, medical practices and health plans. Delmarva performs quality improvement, quality assurance, utilization review, external quality review and Program Safeguard activities. The company's corporate headquarters are located in Easton, Maryland with other offices in Baltimore, Maryland; Washington, DC; Columbia, South Carolina; Tampa, Florida; and Tallahassee, Florida. For more information, please visit Delmarva Foundation on the web at www.delmarvafoundation.org.

8SOW-MD/DC-HOSP-091307-0043
This material was prepared by Delmarva Foundation, the Medicare Quality Improvement Organization for Maryland and the District of Columbia,  under contract with the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services, an agency of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services.