Western Health Advantage (WHA) is offering Gatekeeper Innovation Inc.'s Rx Locking Cap as a covered benefit to members to prevent misuse or abuse of prescription medications at home. This milestone is a major move for Gatekeeper's mission to secure and reduce diversion of prescription medications that can lead to substance abuse, poisoning, and deaths.
All members of Western Health Advantage are now eligible to receive Gatekeeper's Rx Locking Cap at no cost when prescribed a Schedule II through V medication. WHA is providing a full pharmacy reimbursement for up to 5 Rx Locking Cap devices per patient per 365-day rolling period. In addition, WHA is providing a dispensing fee to pharmacies for every Rx Locking Cap dispensed.
"The opioid and medication misuse epidemic calls for solutions on many fronts, including the use of abuse-deterrent, tamper-evident packaging," said Dr. Khuram Arif, Chief Medical Officer at Western Health Advantage. "For this reason, we are introducing the availability of the Rx Locking Cap from Gatekeeper for $0 co-pay."
Drug overdose deaths rose 29.4% in the United States in 2020, according to the CDC.
According to the 2018 National Survey on Drug Use and Abuse, more than 70 percent of individuals who illegally use prescription pain relievers obtained them through friends, family, and the home medicine cabinet.
"With the home medicine cabinet being a primary source for misuse of medications, by offering the Rx Locking Cap we expect to also reduce ED visits, hospitalizations, and treatment admissions among our patient population," said Garry Maisel, President and CEO of Western Health Advantage.
"While the opioid epidemic is a very complex issue, Gatekeeper is excited to collaborate with industry leaders to mitigate the risk of medication misuse in the home," said Kevin Kane, CEO of Gatekeeper.
OptumRx is the pharmacy benefit manager (PBM) facilitating this benefit for California payor, Western Health Advantage. Headquartered in Sacramento, WHA is a non-profit HMO health plan serving 10 Northern California counties. OptumRx is a division of UnitedHealth Group, and is the third-largest PBM, behind Caremark and Express Scripts Inc. To learn more about Gatekeeper's partnership with OptumRx and Western Health Advantage, visit gatekeeperinnovation.com
About Gatekeeper Innovation Inc: Gatekeeper Innovation Inc. is a Sacramento-based company offering tamper-evident and abuse-deterrent technology while supporting medication adherence. Gatekeeper Innovation's mission is to provide options for securing prescription medications to help prevent Diversion and Substance Use Disorder.
