Pharmacy

Blue Cross Pharmacy Managing Costs Through New Partnerships

by Blues Perspectives

| 3 min read

Covid-19 Pharmacy Wearing Face Masks: Professional Pharmacist Helping Beautiful Female Customer with Medicine Recommendation, Talking. Drugstore with Full of Drugs, Pills, Health Care, Beauty Products
At Blue Cross Blue Shield of Michigan and Blue Care Network, we work every day to keep prescription medication affordable for you and your family. That’s why Blue Cross is making improvements to our prescription drug plans beginning Jan. 1, 2022, for commercial group and individual members, to expand access and improve prescription drug prices – giving members like you more value and cost savings. The change will take place on Jan. 1, 2023, for our Medicare group and individual members. As a current member with Blue Cross pharmacy coverage, there are some changes to be aware of.

New ID Card

The updates start with a new Blue Cross and BCN member ID card for 2022, which will be mailed to commercial members before the end of December. If you haven’t received your new ID card, you’ll receive it soon. It’s important to show your new ID card at your pharmacy the first time you fill a prescription in 2022. Make sure to share your new ID card with your doctor’s office as well. You can also access your ID card digitally anytime through your online member account at bcbsm.com or on the Blue Cross Blue Shield of Michigan mobile app. Your digital ID card is always up to date. It will show your new information starting Jan. 1.

New Home Delivery Pharmacy

OptumRx will be the new home delivery pharmacy for our commercial members, starting Jan. 1, 2022. If you receive any medications through Express Scripts – our current home delivery pharmacy – most prescriptions with remaining refills will automatically transfer to OptumRx. You’ll receive a call from OptumRx to set up your account, and they’ll send a letter confirming your transferred prescriptions in January. However, you may need to see your doctor to obtain a new prescription for certain medications to continue home delivery service. You’ll need a new prescription if:
  • There are no refills remaining on your prescription.
  • Your prescription has expired.
  • Your medicine is a controlled substance, which legally can’t be transferred. This includes some medicine to treat chronic pain, attention deficit hyperactivity disorder and seizure conditions. Check the label on your medicine bottle, the prescription insert from the pharmacy or your online member account to see if your medicine is a controlled substance.
You will receive letters in November and January with more details about home delivery service, transferred prescriptions and instructions for sending new prescriptions, which your doctor may also submit electronically for you.

Updated Online Tools

Your online member account at bcbsm.com and on the Blue Cross Blue Shield of Michigan mobile app will feature updated pharmacy information beginning Jan. 1. You’ll still get information about your prescriptions, out-of-pocket costs, and your medication history, and you’ll also find tools that help:
  • Reference the drugs covered under your plan
  • Compare drug prices at pharmacies
  • Find in-network pharmacies
  • Enroll in home delivery
The online tools will have a new look and share some additional information. For more information, visit bcbsm.com/rxchanges. More from MIBluesPerspectives:
Photo credit: Getty Images

You May Also Like

Pharmacy
Common Medications Can Make Your Skin More Sensitive to Sunlight
African American doctor hands a prescription medication bottle to a female patient. The doctor is holding the patient's chart.
Pharmacy
Listen to Your Provider: Why Medication Adherence Matters
Pharmacy
A Weight Loss Trend Has Impacted Access to Diabetes Medications: Why Blue Cross is Taking Action
Pharmacy
What are Biologics and Biosimilars?
Pharmacy
How Do I Know if I’m Allergic to Certain Medications?

Subscribe to get updates in your inbox.

Leave a Comment

Your email address will not be published.

This site is protected by reCAPTCHA and the Google Privacy Policy and Terms of Service apply.

15 Comments
B
Blues Perspectives

Mar 30, 2022 at 2:50pm

Hi Doreen. Our priority is for our members to have stable access to affordable, quality health care. We would like to talk to you about your plan and help with any coverage questions. Please fill out this short form and a member of our team will be in contact: http://miblues.co/1Bb6oI4

B
Blues Perspectives

Mar 30, 2022 at 2:50pm

Thank you for your feedback, Chris. There is a lot of information that needs to go on your member ID card, but we can understand the frustration and will pass it along.

B
Blues Perspectives

Mar 30, 2022 at 2:50pm

Thank you for pointing this out, Melissa. We will forward this to our writing team.

B
Blues Perspectives

Mar 29, 2022 at 9:11pm

Hi Cindy. We are not a pharmacy, but we do offer a prescription drug plan. You can learn more about what’s discussed in this article here: https://www.bcbsm.com/rxchanges/index/

B
Blues Perspectives

Mar 29, 2022 at 9:00pm

Hi Joanne. We apologize that you had that experience. We hope everything is resolved, but if you need additional assistance, please visit our Customer Action Center. https://miblues.co/36W9ubU - James

Privacy
Careers
Contact
MI Blues Perspectives is sponsored by Blue Cross Blue Shield of Michigan, a nonprofit, independent licensee of the Blue Cross Blue Shield Association