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Walgreens dropping customers - ALL TriCare & ESI Coverage as of January 1, 2012 will end!
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Medicare & Insurance
Walgreens dropping customers - ALL TriCare & ESI Coverage as of January 1, 2012 will end!
Share Medicare dos and don’ts, including eligibility and supplemental insurance.
Not seen anyone speak of this, but a few months ago Walgreens walked away from the discussion tables with TriCare / Express Scripts and sent a letter out to all their pharmacies stating that after th
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Cat:91a4afbf-9555-4e02-b9d3-9eef604476f6Forum:c79f53c3-fa71-4e76-b517-aef042efd7ffDiscussion:03028167-3fbc-4040-924f-b5863a0769ca
Forums » Health » Medicare & Insurance » Walgreens dropping customers - ALL TriCare & ESI Coverage as of January 1, 2012 will end!
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Walgreens dropping customers - ALL TriCare & ESI Coverage as of January 1, 2012 will end!
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Walgreens dropping customers - ALL TriCare & ESI Coverage as of January 1, 2012 will end!
posted at August 31, 2011 6:50 PM EDT
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Posts: 4
First: August 31, 2011 Last: September 9, 2011 |
Not seen anyone speak of this, but a few months ago Walgreens walked away from the discussion tables with TriCare / Express Scripts and sent a letter out to all their pharmacies stating that after the first of the year, they will no longer cover any plan for any military families of TriCare or Express Scripts. They went on to state their negotiations were unsuccessful and the in their words, “We were surprised by their (ESI’s) ultimate stance during our talks, which made it clear to us (Walgreens) that they no longer had an interest in continuing meaningful relationship and that potential inconvenience to our customers was not a primary consideration of theirs (ESI).” does this sound crazy to anyone else? Seriously.
I called ESI, who by the way is now in talks with MEDCO to merge making ESI a VERY large company. I was told that Walgreens did in fact walk away from the table because they did not like the money arrangement between ESI offered. Walgreens wants more money, yet their letter makes it sound like ESI does not care about their client base. Quite the opposite if a person looks into this a bit in detail. With the merger of MEDCO on the horizon, Walgreens will lose over 3.75 billion in revenue per year, not to say the loss of so many in their customer base.
I am really surprised that this issue is being so hush - hush! Before you know it, all of the AARP people that depend on Walgreens as a provider of coverage for TriCare and ESI coverage plans will be without coverage! Many will be left without any pharmacy in their state or will be forced to find a participating TriCare or ESI pharmacy. Not an easy task by any means and not available in every city of state. CVS may be the only pharmacy that will continue with coverage. CVS is NOT in every state.
Does anyone care that the company that claims to care about their customers is putting the screws to you? Please look into this as I think Walgreens is at fault for dropping the ball, not so much ESI or TriCare.
I hope that someone with some sense can get through to Walgreens Corporate as if ESI is successful in their acquisition of MEDCO, they will dominate the industry and we as customers will have no or very few options to select from! So unless Walgreens gets back to the table and decides not to be so greedy as the contract with ESI/TriCare is set by the Department of Defense and not the other way around!
So in your opinion do you think Walgreens is to greedy and wants a lot more money from ESI and TriCare and that is why they are dropping over 6.5 Million customers? |
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Re: Walgreens dropping customers - ALL TriCare & ESI Coverage as of January 1, 2012 will end!
posted at September 1, 2011 12:04 PM EDT
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Posts: 14588
First: January 28, 2008 Last: May 22, 2013 |
Looks like there are two sides to the story! without the details about what the arrangement is and that proposed it's hard to decide right and wrong. I didn't know that Tri Care made "arrangements" with pharmacies. Are there subsidies involved? Who is ESI? Karl |
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Re: Walgreens dropping customers - ALL TriCare & ESI Coverage as of January 1, 2012 will end!
posted at September 2, 2011 12:48 PM EDT
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Posts: 4
First: August 31, 2011 Last: September 9, 2011 |
In Response to Re: Walgreens dropping customers - ALL TriCare & ESI Coverage as of January 1, 2012 will end!: Looks like there are two sides to the story! without the details about what the arrangement is and that proposed it's hard to decide right and wrong. I didn't know that Tri Care made "arrangements" with pharmacies. Are there subsidies involved? Who is ESI? Karl Posted by krlklar Yes, you are correct in there being two side to the story. ESI (Express Scripts,inc.) is the mail order and company that provides insurance benefit coverage for military families, goverenment agencies, and several other large companies. Walgreens refused to accept the plan that is regulated by DOD contracts, and the bottom line is that Walgreens wants to get more money from TriCare/ESI. Walgreens is going to quit providing coverage for over 5 million military families because they are not happy with the proposed payment table set up by DOD and TriCare. Walgreens states they "care about their customers" on their website, but the bottom line is if they cared why would they drop all TriCare coverage? If walking away from 5 million plus that have served our country in times of war and peace is taking care of their customers, I must have missed something while I served this great nation of ours. Walgreens is greedy and only thinking of money, not the millions that servered for our freedoms. |
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Re: Walgreens dropping customers - ALL TriCare & ESI Coverage as of January 1, 2012 will end!
posted at September 2, 2011 3:10 PM EDT
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Posts: 14588
First: January 28, 2008 Last: May 22, 2013 |
Is ESI a private company? Companies are in business to make a profit, and can't be expected to provide services charitably. Competition is the key to keeping prices reasonable. |
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Re: Walgreens dropping customers - ALL TriCare & ESI Coverage as of January 1, 2012 will end!
posted at September 9, 2011 3:17 PM EDT
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Posts: 4
First: August 31, 2011 Last: September 9, 2011 |
In Response to Re: Walgreens dropping customers - ALL TriCare & ESI Coverage as of January 1, 2012 will end!: Is ESI a private company? Companies are in business to make a profit, and can't be expected to provide services charitably. Competition is the key to keeping prices reasonable. Posted by krlklar The Department of Defense has cut spending, and will not meet Walgreen's demand for additional money. ESI is a company that is part of a defense contract that supplies prescriptions thru mail order and local pharmacy's. I think that AARP should ask why the Department of Defense cut benefits for millions of military dependants, active duty, retired, etc.... This is not about making a profit, this is about millions of military personnel that are going to be put out, or completely unable to obtain the necessary medications because the Government slipped a bill through to cut benefits for those who served our great nation. Skip the lame excuse of competition and profit and GET AARP TO LOBBY for those rights we hold so near and dear; FREEDOM. AARP, fight for our Veteran's who fought, and those that continue to sacrifice their lives for us!
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Re: Walgreens dropping customers - ALL TriCare & ESI Coverage as of January 1, 2012 will end!
posted at September 11, 2011 12:52 PM EDT
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Posts: 14588
First: January 28, 2008 Last: May 22, 2013 |
In Response to Re: Walgreens dropping customers - ALL TriCare & ESI Coverage as of January 1, 2012 will end!: In Response to Re: Walgreens dropping customers - ALL TriCare & ESI Coverage as of January 1, 2012 will end! : The Department of Defense has cut spending, and will not meet Walgreen's demand for additional money. ESI is a company that is part of a defense contract that supplies prescriptions thru mail order and local pharmacy's. I think that AARP should ask why the Department of Defense cut benefits for millions of military dependants, active duty, retired, etc.... This is not about making a profit, this is about millions of military personnel that are going to be put out, or completely unable to obtain the necessary medications because the Government slipped a bill through to cut benefits for those who served our great nation. Skip the lame excuse of competition and profit and GET AARP TO LOBBY for those rights we hold so near and dear; FREEDOM. AARP, fight for our Veteran's who fought, and those that continue to sacrifice their lives for us! Posted by ScottsSpot So basically it was a government decision that caused the loss of coverage! Not the first time. A few years ago I couldn't even get copay status for drugs despite beong a combat vet of WW II because they cut VA coverage. Then they changed again and I did get coverage. Wonder if I'll lose that soon. Karl |
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Re: Walgreens dropping customers - ALL TriCare & ESI Coverage as of January 1, 2012 will end!
posted at September 12, 2011 7:13 PM EDT
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Posts: 1
First: September 12, 2011 Last: September 12, 2011 |
Why is AARP not enraged about the upcoming rate increase with United health insurance, this is supplemental insurance.I had to wait six months before i could use it because of existing medical issues, but i still had to pay the premium. After the six months was over they raised the premium, now after the first year they want to raise the premium again. They really take advantage of senior citizens on a fixed income.Supposedly this outfit is sanction by AARP, so where is the out rage by AARP, are they going to just let them raise premium without a fight ????? |
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Re: Walgreens dropping customers - ALL TriCare & ESI Coverage as of January 1, 2012 will end!
posted at September 13, 2011 11:37 AM EDT
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Posts: 14588
First: January 28, 2008 Last: May 22, 2013 |
In Response to Re: Walgreens dropping customers - ALL TriCare & ESI Coverage as of January 1, 2012 will end!: Why is AARP not enraged about the upcoming rate increase with United health insurance, this is supplemental insurance.I had to wait six months before i could use it because of existing medical issues, but i still had to pay the premium. After the six months was over they raised the premium, now after the first year they want to raise the premium again. They really take advantage of senior citizens on a fixed income.Supposedly this outfit is sanction by AARP, so where is the out rage by AARP, are they going to just let them raise premium without a fight ????? Posted by coldcountry Unfortunately I expect increased premiums are likely under the non reform ACA. AARP's endorsement only means they get a cut of the insurers profit as fees . You can switch medigap plans at any time I believe, so check what's available in your location on Medicare.gov and choose another if it's cheaper Karl |
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Re: Walgreens dropping customers - ALL TriCare & ESI Coverage as of January 1, 2012 will end!
posted at September 13, 2011 5:56 PM EDT
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Posts: 12532
First: February 29, 2008 Last: May 17, 2013 |
In Response to Re: Walgreens dropping customers - ALL TriCare & ESI Coverage as of January 1, 2012 will end!: Why is AARP not enraged about the upcoming rate increase with United health insurance, this is supplemental insurance. AARP , are they going to just let them raise premium without a fight ????? Posted by coldcountry One fact is that the large salaries and bonuses for executives are extracted from revenue before profits are reported. So the big difference between the US and other developed countries is inefficient administration and the large compensation packages the US executives receive compared to those given to the executives of European providers.
CIGNA CEO $120.51 million with stock options $28,881, 000 HUMANA CEO $15.3 million over 5 yrs 60,686,000 stock options |
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Re: Walgreens dropping customers - ALL TriCare & ESI Coverage as of January 1, 2012 will end!
posted at September 14, 2011 2:18 PM EDT
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Posts: 14588
First: January 28, 2008 Last: May 22, 2013 |
True competition would reduce some of those numbers which I think are unjustified. They do have to put up some money to acquire stock so the options aren't all gains and could even result in losses. Government entities are notorious for inefficiency too! There is little incentive beyond getting more funds and increasing power. Karl |
Forums » Health » Medicare & Insurance » Walgreens dropping customers - ALL TriCare & ESI Coverage as of January 1, 2012 will end!
