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Recent updates from your favorite local pharmacy NOTE: This is a long one, but has lots of important info! If you’re not a Medicare patient, you can skip the final 2 updates in the “Other updates” section.
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Last week, John was given the Harold R. Popp Award from the Minnesota Pharmacists Association (MPhA) in recognition of his outstanding service to the profession of pharmacy. This is the highest honor bestowed by the association and is the third award John has received from MPhA, making him the first individual to ever receive the Harold R. Popp, Bowl of Hygeia (2011), and Distinguished Young Pharmacist (1996) awards. We are so proud to have him leading our team toward a healthier and happier future for our little corner of this country, as well as the U.S.A. as a whole. John—we appreciate your tenacity, dedication, and, most of all, your kind and giving spirit. Make sure to give John some love next time you stop in the store! Click below to see the other awards St. Paul Corner Drug and our team members have received over the years.
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Advocacy content moving to MNIndys.org
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HEADS UP! This will be the last edition of the DOSE including advocacy information. All future advocacy-related updates will be sent via Minnesota Independent Pharmacists’ (MNIndys’) monthly newsletter, the MNIndys Mailer (like this e-news bulletin, currently written by our nurse and the MNIndys Executive Director, Hildie). Similarly, the “Advocacy” tab will soon lead directly to mnindys.org, where you will find all of our “Get Educated” and other advocacy-related content. We are making this change at the recommendation of our new tech consultant, who is helping us and MNIndys optimize our digital presence and tech-related tools so that we can most effectively fight the bad guys. In short, it’s better for our site to include just pharmacy information (with a few exceptions) and to use the MNIndys site as the hub for advocacy. We are SO grateful for the growing presence of people who’ve subscribed to this news bulletin and have been following along with our journey in the world of health advocacy. We couldn’t do this without ALL of you. Please click the button below to subscribe to the MNIndys Mailer so that you’ll receive both critical SPCD updates AND advocacy-related updates (i.e., have your bases covered!). Remember that this newsletter will only be sent ~monthly and will contain exactly the kind of updates we’ve been sending in the DOSE for the last few years (indeed, the same person will be writing it ;p).
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RECAP: MNIndys Phundraiser @ Surly Brewing Co.
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We’re pleased to report that our second MNIndys phundraising event was a success! Our leadership and a few other indy pharmacists from the Twin Cities connected with lots of new folks (yay!) as well some influential legislators, including Rep. Danny Nadeau (R—District 34A), Sen. Glenn Gruenhagen (R—District 17), and DFLer Kaohly Vang Her (District 64A), who recently announced she is running for Mayor of St. Paul. It’s an amazing thing to both have patrons and patients AND legislators asking us, “how can we help?” So, for those of you wondering the same thing, some reminders: If you haven’t already done so, consider donating to either our MNIndy 100 campaign (supports our 501(c)4, so donations are NOT tax-deductible) or our new MNIndys Foundation (a 501(c)3 nonprofit, so donations ARE tax-deductible) Share, share, SHARE our story—whether that’s through an email to friends and family, resharing posts on our (see the bottom of this email) and MNIndys’ social media (Facebook | Instagram | X (Twitter)), or asking your coworkers to check out our campaign pages, it all matters. The issues we’re fighting impact EVERYONE living in this nation, and increasing our spread is of the utmost importance right now. Didn’t click the button above to subscribe to the MNIndys Mailer? Do that! And share it with others! Have grant writing skills to spare? Let Hildie know at mnindysrx@gmail.com! Interested in hosting and/or financially sponsoring an event—big or small—in the future? Let Hildie know at mnindysrx@gmail.com!
THANK YOU all for your support thus far—patients like you are the reason that pharmacies like us still stand a chance, and we promise that we’ll keep fighting for you in kind. Stay tuned via the MNIndys Mailer for information coming soon about our next MNIndys event: a speakeasy shindig in Winsted, MN! NOTE: If you’d be cool donating to either of the above, our priority right now is to raise $50,000 for the MNIndy 100 before the end of 2025 so that we can pay for our lobby team. So this is the one to prioritize until we hit that mark!
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State health officials endorse COVID-19 vaccine recommendations from national medical associations
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This week, the Minnesota Department of Health released an official statement opening up pharmacists’ ability to vaccinate individuals against COVID-19 according to national medical associations’ guidelines (e.g., the American Academy of Pediatrics (AAP) and American Academy of Family Physicians (AAFP)). In doing so, they’ve ensured Minnesotans’ access to this life-saving vaccine as we head into this year’s respiratory illness season. COVID vaccine has already arrived in our store and appointments for this vaccine, flu, shingles, tetanus, and more are available now on our website! Remember that for flu and COVID, we’re able to vaccinate children 3+ years old; for all other vaccines, the minimum age is 6 years old. Click below to book your appointment(s)!
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ATTENTION: HealthPartners Medicare Advantage patients
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We’re sad to say that we were recently informed that HealthPartners’ Medicare Advantage plans will be switching their pharmacy benefit manager (PBM) from MedImpact to Express Scripts in 2026. This move will be devastating to independent pharmacies like us, as Express Scripts—one of the “Big 3” PBMs in the U.S. controlling a significant portion of the prescription market—is well known for under-reimbursing the pharmacies they work with for filling prescriptions and giving vaccinations. We wanted to communicate that, at this time, we do not have a Medicare contract agreed to with Express Scripts, as doing so at their current proposed rates would lead to financial loss on nearly 100% of prescriptions. Similar to Medica’s Medicare Advantage plans leaving our network last year, this means that we expect NOT to be able to bill HealthPartners Medicare Advantage plans next year, unless something changes with our contract “negotiations” (because PBMs don’t actually negotiate with independent pharmacies). If you’re a Medicare Advantage patient and would like to continue to have your prescriptions and vaccinations billed through insurance at our pharmacy next year, you may need to consider an alternative to HealthPartners plans. Keep an eye out for more information from us via the DOSE and updates to our Medicare page as we learn more about this situation, and feel free to reach out to us if we can answer any questions!
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Other CRITICAL MEDICARE UPDATES
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BIG changes are coming in 2026… UCare is dropping out of the Medicare Advantage business. If you currently have a UCare Advantage plan—and many of you do—you will need to address this situation during Open Enrollment (starting TOMORROW, October 15th - December 7th). Anyone whose plan is going away next year (as is the case with UCare) has a unique, no-questions-asked opportunity to transition to Traditional Medicare A & B with a supplement and drug plan. If you are affected by this change, we STRONGLY recommend you explore this option. It is our understanding that other Medicare Advantage plans will be dropping out in specific counties of the state for 2026. Those plans include BCBS, HealthPartners, Aetna, and UnitedHealthcare. If you plan to renew your current coverage for next year, be certain to contact your insurance to make sure your plan is not being dropped. If your plan is dropped and you do nothing, you will revert, by default, to Traditional Medicare A & B WITHOUT a supplement… Leaving you to find yourself in January or February 2026 with only Medicare A & B coverage (80% of any medical expense). Twenty percent of a hospital stay or other large medical expense is a large sum of money that you would be responsible to pay if you have traditional Medicare without a supplement due to the discontinuation of your current plan. Please, DO NOT ignore this issue and assume you will be ok—do your research and make a plan that fits your health needs and budget. You may think that the plan should notify you if it is going away; they may, but they are not required to. They are only required to inform you of plan changes, such as changes to your deductible, drug formulary, or other coverage parameters. Medicare Advantage networks are shrinking fast, limiting patient access to the providers they want to use for their care. This is evident in the fact that we are currently without a service contract for 2026 Medicare Advantage plans offered by Medica, HealthPartners, Cigna, and Humana. Additionally, we do not have a contract for the Part D drug plans offered by Cigna or Wellcare. That, at least for now, theoretically leaves you with BCBS, Aetna, and UnitedHealthcare for Medicare Advantage and Part D plans as the only current options to choose if you want to continue having us fill and bill your prescriptions and vaccines using insurance in 2026. Our Cost Plus self-pay program is still available to ALL patients, regardless of whether your insurance plan is accepted at SPCD. If you take inexpensive, generic medications, this is probably a great option for you for several reasons, and it helps financially support our business because it ensures we’re being compensated fairly. If you are not familiar with this option, we would be happy to discuss it with you during your next visit to the pharmacy!
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