House Staff Pharmaceutical Benefit Guide approved by the Pharmacy & Therapeutics Subcommittee
July 1, 2012 – June 30, 2013
General Program Guidelines
This program is administered by the UIHC Department of Pharmaceutical Care Ambulatory Care Pharmacies in conjunction with Wellmark formulary guidelines.
1. Prescription medications, if medically necessary, are available for house staff members or their immediate family member, defined as a spouse or child living with the house staff member. Members and their covered family members should present their Wellmark identification card to the pharmacy, or have their Wellmark ID number available.
2. Medications will be covered using the Wellmark Pharmacy “tiers”. Coinsurance (patient’s responsibility) is determined by a combination of the medication’s tier and pharmacy service location:
Plan Tiers |
UIHC Pharmacy Locations |
Outside Pharmacy Locations |
Tier 1 (most generic medications) |
$0 |
25% coinsurance |
Tier 2 |
15% coinsurance |
30% coinsurance |
Tier 3 |
35% coinsurance |
50% coinsurance |
Tier 4 (not covered) |
100% coinsurance |
100% coinsurance |
Payment for coinsurance will be due at the time of service.
Wellmark’s condensed preferred drug list can be found by using the following link: http://pharmacy.wellmark.com/docs/WellmarkPDL2011.pdf
3. Wellmark prior authorization and quantity limit criteria will apply to all prescriptions.
4. A clinician may not prescribe medications for himself or herself in accordance with the Hospital Policy MS-SOP-01.21. In general, prescriptions should be issued as part of a clinic visit. This is consistent with expectations of the Board of Medical Examiners, the AMA, and hospital guidelines. Over-the-counter medications (with the exception of pseudoephedrine products, per Iowa law) may be self-prescribed.
5. Hospital policy and state law require that prescriptions for all controlled substances written for immediate family or personal use must be written by a clinical faculty member. All prescriptions for controlled substances must include an appropriate DEA registration number. Effective May 21, 2005, most pseudoephedrine-containing products sold in Iowa (including all such products stocked by University Hospitals) are handled as Schedule V controlled substances.
6. To assure safe prescribing, legal compliance, and avoidance of the potential for dangerous drug interactions, all prescriptions should be generated from the Epic medical record if written by a UIHC prescriber. Prescriptions must reflect the complete name of the patient for whom the medication is being prescribed, hospital number, birth date, date written, and the indication for use.
7. Prescription drug use will be monitored on an ongoing basis to detect potentially excessive utilization of medications (whether restricted or unrestricted) by house staff physicians and dentists. Individuals with unusually high rates of prescription drug utilization (for themselves or their dependents) may be contacted to provide additional information on the circumstances influencing their prescribing practices.
8. To minimize waiting time for clinic and discharge patients, house staff are asked to plan ahead so that refills and new prescriptions for non-urgent medications are presented one day and picked up the following day.
9. Prescription refills may be requested via the web at www.jasrx.com or by phone at 384-6800.
10. Questions regarding a bill/statement may be referred to the Pharmacy Business Office at 353-7516.
11. If receiving high cost self-injectable medication (covered under medical) 10% of the co-pay must be paid at the time of service; the balance may be placed on account with the pharmacy billing office. Signing of a Pharmacy Financial Agreement is required. Failure to pay the balance within one week of receiving insurance reimbursement will result in the balance being deducted from monthly payroll.
12. A limited number of over-the-counter medications (listed below) are available at no cost to house staff at UIHC Pharmacies. These are medications that are not covered by the Wellmark plan, and that the patient could purchase at any local pharmacy or discount store. Staff must present their UIHC Photo ID. Limit one package per visit.
Over-the-Counter (OTC) Approved Medication List
Acetaminophen Tablets, Chew 80 mg
Acetaminophen Tablets 325 mg
Acetaminophen Soln 80 mg/0.8ml
Acetaminophen Oral Suspension 160 mg/5 ml
Acetaminophen Suppositories 120 mg
Artificial Tears 15 ml
Bacitracin Ointment 15 gm, 30 gm
Aspirin Tablets, chewable & EC 81 mg
Aspirin Tablets (EC or regular) 325 mg
Benzoyl Peroxide Lotion 5%, 10%
Benzoyl Peroxide Gel 5%, 10%
Bismuth Subsalicylate Tabs & Suspension
Calcium Carbonate Chew Tab (Tums)
Cetirizine Tablets 10 mg
Cetirizine Oral Syrup 1 mg/1 ml
Chlorpheniramine Tablets 4 mg
Clotrimazole Vaginal Cream 2%
Diphenhydramine Capsules 25 mg
Diphenhydramine Oral Soln 12.5 mg/5 ml
Docusate Sodium Capsules 100 mg
Famotidine Tablets 10 mg
Ferrous Sulfate Tablets 325 mg
Ferrous Sulfate Oral Drops 125 mg/ml
Ferrous Gluconate Tablets 324 mg
Ibuprofen Tabs 200 mg
Ibuprofen Susp 100 mg/5 ml
Loperamide Capsules 2 mg
Loratadine 10 mg
Maalox (or generic) suspension
Meclizine tablets 12.5 mg, 25 mg
Miconazole Topical Cream 2% 30 gm
Naproxen Tablets 250 mg
Niacin Tablets 500 mg
Permethrin Topical Liquid 1%
Ranitidine Tablets 150 mg
Robitussin DM (or generic)
Prenatal Multivitamins
Senna Tablets 187 mg
Triple Antibiotic Ointment