title: Pharmacist-provided telephonic medication therapy management in an MAPD plan.
abstract: OBJECTIVE
  To evaluate the impact of a pharmacist-provided telephonic medication therapy management program (MTMP) on drug, medical, and total expenditures in a Medicare Advantage Prescription Drug (MAPD) plan population from the perspective of the health plan sponsor.
  
  
  METHODS
  Prepost analysis with a matched control group.
  
  
  METHODS
  The intervention group was composed of MTMP-eligible MAPD members who received a pharmacist-provided telephonic consultation during the first quarter of 2008. Propensity score matching was used to select a matched control group among the remaining pool of MTMP-eligible MAPD members who did not receive a pharmacist-provided telephonic or face-to-face MTMP consultation in 2008. All-cause healthcare spending was determined before and after an intervention period for the MTMP consultation and control groups. A difference-in-difference analysis was performed to assess the impact of MTMP consultation on all-cause healthcare spending.
  
  
  RESULTS
  A total of 432 MTMP-eligible MAPD members who received an intervention were matched to a comparison group of 432 members. The MTMP consultation group and the comparison group had different unadjusted total expenditures after intervention. The MTMP consultation group had an average of $3680 less per member in the postintervention period compared with the preintervention period, while the matched comparison group had an average of $393 more in the postintervention period compared with the preintervention period. Results from difference-in-difference regression analyses suggest that MTMP consultation was associated with lower total expenditures after adjusting for other baseline covariates.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  Pharmacist-provided telephonic MTMP consultations can lead to decreases in total all-cause healthcare expenditures.
authors: Humana Inc, Competitive Health Analytics, 321 W. Main St, WFP6W, Louisville, KY 40202, USA. mward@humana.com
authors: Melea A
authors: MA
authors: Ward
authors: Yihua
authors: Y
authors: Xu
mesh_terms: D016527:Drug Costs / Q000706:statistics & numerical data; D006801:Humans; D007356:Insurance, Pharmaceutical Services / Q000191:economics*; D020398:Medicare Part C / Q000191:economics* / Q000706:statistics & numerical data; D054539:Medication Therapy Management / Q000191:economics*; D010595:Pharmacists; D012189:Retrospective Studies; D017216:Telemedicine / Q000191:economics / Q000379:methods*; D014481:United States