When patients are living with complex and chronic conditions, managing their health and navigating treatment plans can be daunting. They shouldn’t have to bear the additional burden of worrying whether critical medications will arrive on time due to an issue like an incoming storm, road closures during a big event, or needing to leave town for a last-minute business trip. Accredo by Evernorth – which is Evernorth Health Services’ specialty pharmacy – anticipates those and other potential delivery challenges and has processes in place to help ensure patients get their medications when and where they need them.
For example, one Accredo patient’s refrigerated medication was damaged earlier this year in a traffic accident involving the commercial vehicle it was being delivered in. Any delay would have posed a significant risk to the patient, who has advanced diabetes and needed to administer the medication within 24 hours. Our dedicated team of monitoring specialists quickly identified the issue, allowing us to promptly activate a contingency plan. We leveraged Evernorth’s extensive network of care delivery sites, expedited processing of a replacement medication, collaborated with our shipping partners, and a courier crew drove throughout the night to ensure the medicine was delivered within the original timeframe.
“This success story is just one of many examples that showcase Evernorth’s commitment to ensuring patients receive the medications they depend on without delay, even in the face of unforeseen challenges,” said Gary Becker, VP of Operations for Evernorth’s pharmacies including Accredo. “Holistic patient care is at the center of everything we do. A key element of our care model is ensuring patients receive their medications on schedule – no matter what the external circumstances might be.”
Expansive footprint
Holistically, Evernorth has one of the largest fulfillment networks nationwide, with nearly 40 care delivery sites, which fill and distribute prescriptions across the United States. This extensive network is powered by Evernorth’s advanced technology, which analyzes nearly 8 million specialty medications annually to determine the most efficient delivery method for each patient.
That means that when one of our care delivery sites faces extreme weather or another unforeseen event, we deploy our advanced technology and determine how to reroute the order, helping ensure quick, safe, and on-time delivery.
Real-time tracking
To help ensure timely delivery, a team of monitoring specialists oversees the delivery of each prescription from the moment it leaves one of our care delivery sites to the time it reaches the patient. In addition, we stay in touch with patients, providing real-time tracking updates to ensure they are aware of their medication’s status.
In those rare instances when the delivery window is impacted for any reason, our dedicated personnel use advanced tools to intervene and determine the best solution.
Contingency planning
Our comprehensive contingency planning enables these processes, allowing us to anticipate potential scenarios and plan ahead. That includes partnering with multiple shipping carriers to ensure each patient’s treatment can proceed without interruption.
We continually monitor emerging events, such as storms, and anticipate planned events, such as championship sports games, so we can adjust deliveries proactively. This can mean accelerating orders, shipping to alternative locations, or holding orders until they can be sent safely.
Success in uninterrupted care
At Evernorth, we are committed to ensuring our patients get uninterrupted care. Our expansive footprint, real-time tracking capabilities and contingency planning are foundational elements of our business, and they work in unison to deliver seamless care, earning us the trust of patients and providers as their preferred specialty pharmacy partner year after year. Through these efforts, Accredo continues to set the standard for reliable, patient-centered care in specialty pharmacy.
