When plan sponsors join our coalition, they gain access to the level of benefits otherwise granted to only the largest companies in the nation, regardless of their size. Today, the coalition provides drug benefits to more than 450 employers and coalitions on behalf of 250,000 employees and dependents.

That is the idea behind cooperative purchasing – together achieving results that one otherwise could not achieve alone. Our size brings members deep discounts and rebates certainly, but it also allows us to negotiate numerous other benefits, such as cutting edge clinical programs offered free of charge.

An example of the coalition’s growing bargaining power was the last renegotiation with the PBM partner. It resulted in a ten-plus percent improvement in overall pricing resulting in total savings of $17 million for the cooperative. We also negotiated early pricing to net existing members an additional $4 million in savings.

We also negotiated the following from our PBM partner, Caremark:

• $500,000 in annual development funds for WisconsinRx/National CooperativeRx to purchase clinical programs for members
• $500,000 annually to bring other added-value services to members and
• $200,000 annually to promote and grow the cooperative
• Measures to help ensure retail network stability
• Increased manpower on our dedicated Caremark account and implementation team.