Tri-parish pharmacy shares in medication settlement

St. Vincent DePaul Tri-Parish Community Pharmacy is one of 12 charitable medication providers in Louisiana to share in court settlement distribution of more than $620,000 that involved two of the nation’s largest pharmacy benefit management companies.

Responding to a multi-state class action lawsuit, Express Scripts Inc. and Caremark Rx L.L.C. agreed to pay, in relation to Louisiana, for alleged violations of the state’s unfair trade practices and consumer protection law.

The joint effort among state’s attorneys general resulted in compensation for charitable pharmacies that provide prescription services for individuals that do not have access to necessary medications insurance plans or government assistance programs.

Under the court settlement terms, Louisiana’s Attorney General James D. “Buddy” Caldwell’s office distributed proceeds beginning last week to the non-profit organizations involved. The condition of acceptance was what the money received in this settlement be used to benefit low income, disabled or elderly customers with prescription medications.

“These funds will directly benefit the working poor, underinsured and uninsured communities around the state,” Caldwell said. “We are pleased that we are able to aid those organizations that provide our citizens with medications that they could not otherwise afford.”

“We did not initiate any of this,” St. Vincent DePaul Tri-Parish Community Pharmacy co-manager Phyllis Lagrade said. “We are just the beneficiary for our cases.”

Lagrade said she was not aware of the lawsuit until she received a letter from Caldwell’s office informing her of the settlement. She also said she did not know what specific violations were allegedly committed by the case respondents, but specified that the check arrived on the day that marked this charitable pharmacy’s 10th anniversary of opening.

“We are really hyped about this,” Lagrade said. “With the United Way funding us and this coming in it shows that we are filling a proven need in the area.”

Lagrade said that 100 percent of the $48,000 her pharmacy received would go to buy medicines they do not get through physicians or nursing homes. “We do not handle narcotics,” she said. “It is all vital medicine like blood pressure, anything like this.”

Pharmacy personnel, including a registered pharmacist, provide services on a volunteer basis at the Houma charity location. The pharmacy is opened on Tuesday and Thursday mornings. “Our St. Vincent’s store pays all the bills so that donations can be used to buy meds,” Lagrade said.

Caldwell said that consumer related enforcement sends a loud message to corporations to not scam Louisiana citizens. “We simply will not tolerate it,” he said.

A breakdown of the charitable Louisiana pharmacies sharing in the settlement included $48,000 each delivered to St. Vincent DePaul Tri-Parish Community Pharmacy in Houma, St. Vincent DePaul community Pharmacy in Monroe, Lafayette Community Healthcare Clinic in Lafayette and Eunice Community Health Center in Eunice.

The largest payouts of this settlement, at $68,000, were offered to M.L. King Health Center Pharmacy in Shreveport, St. Vincent DePaul Community Pharmacy in Baton Rouge and St. Vincent DePaul Community Pharmacy in New Orleans.

The CMAP Express and Community Healthworx, both in Alexandra, each received $58,000.

Payouts of $36,602 were issued to Beauregard Agape Community Clinic in DeRidder, Calcasieu Community Pharmacy in Lake Charles and Northwest Louisiana Interfaith Pharmacy in Shreveport.

The Louisiana Attorney General’s Office distributed funds through the Louisiana Board of Pharmacy in accordance to provisions with Title 46, Chapter 21 of the Louisiana Administrative Code.