Dear supporters, 

Please send photos of how your mail order medications are received in the freezing temperatures this week, both room temperature and refrigerated meds.

My email is loretta@uniteforsafemeds.org

Are they packaged in a bag or a foam cooler? If you have a temperature sensor or a way to see what temperature they are upon arrival, please take another photo and include that information. If not, please just send what you can. 

I will remove any personal information on the labels to hide your identity. If you have time, include the approximate temperatures in your area and the city and state. If you feel comfortable, you may include your pharmacy's name. I'll use this for our advocacy purpose and for the petition. 

In Missouri the temperatures are in the single digits this week. Due to our advocacy, new temperature regulations have been enacted in my state, but I have no faith that the largest mail order pharmacies will adhere. In Missouri, medications should not be received in only a bag any longer in extreme temperatures, not even most room temperature medications if they adhere to the new rule. The monetary penalty of not packaging medications safely is much lower than the cost ensuring safe medication storage. The board basically told the mail order pharmacies that they must have policies and procedures to ensure safe temperature storage. Those policy and procedures should've already been in existence. The board said little about actually enforcing the rule or requiring the use of temperature controlled vehicles or the use of temperature sensors that would cost pennies. The rules stating medications should be stored within the FDA or drug manufacturers guidelines have been around for many years, and the Board has done little to enforce it. Patients need help.

Keep in mind, many are forced to an insurance owned mail order pharmacy. Hopefully, this will change soon. 

On another update later this week, I'll share my recent travel to Arkansas where I spoke alongside legislators, Arkansas Pharmacy Association, and the Attorney General of Arkansas as they are the first state to propose legislation to stop the insurance company's pharmacy benefit managers (PBMs) from owning their own pharmacies that they often force to. The largest pharmacy benefit managers are Optum RX, CVS Caremark, & Express Scripts. You can watch my comments about the legislation made during the press conference is here. 

If you are forced to mail order and are receiving meds in only bags or frozen medications in foam coolers, file a complaint with your Board of Pharmacy, and your state and federal legislators.

Thank you for your support, 

Loretta Boesing, Patient Advocate

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