19,000 Connecticut Residents Sign Up for State's Prescription Discount Card

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It is the state’s first prescription drug discount card. ArrayRx - according to the Office of State Comptroller Sean Scanlon which administers the program - has, in a relatively short time, seen more than 19,000 Connecticut residents sign up, earning an average savings per prescription of $219. Those numbers have grown steadily all year.

The free discount card is easy to use at more than 98% of pharmacies in Connecticut, according to the Comptroller’s office. There is no membership fee to join, no age or income restrictions, all FDA-approved prescriptions are eligible for discounts, and each individual user signs up and gets their own digital card with a unique ID number.

The program can be utilized by Connecticut residents, and is also available in Nevada, Oregon and Washington State. The ArrayRx Discount Card network includes over 64,000 pharmacies nationally, and individuals can use the Find a Pharmacy tool on the website arrayrxcard.com to locate one where the card can be used.

The digital ArrayRx Discount Card can be used to purchase any FDA-approved drug including:

• Smoking cessation medications
• Diabetes supplies
• Vaccinations (travel, flu, shingles, pneumonia, and more)
• Some over-the-counter (OTC) drugs. The OTC item must have a National Drug Code (NDC) for it to be covered. NDCs identify drugs for the FDA.

Back in January, the Comptroller’s Office reported that since the October 2, 2023 launch, more than 15,500 Connecticut residents had signed up, and more than 1,800 prescriptions had been filled. Of those prescriptions, ~87% were generic and ~11% were brand-name; the remaining ~1% accounts for non-drug items, such as diabetes test strips. The average saving per prescription at that time had been $200.

“Savings at the pharmacy counter have ranged from a few dollars to hundreds, but the bottom line is that this card is putting money back in the pockets of Connecticut residents,” Comptroller Scanlon said in January.

Scanlon has been promoting the program throughout the state, highlighting its benefits in local communities and local pharmacies.

"Connecticut and the United States have the highest per capita drug costs in the entire world,” Scanlon said last December, in the early weeks of the program. “One in five residents in Connecticut, according to a recent study, have said that they have chosen to not get their prescription or not refill their prescription because they can’t afford it compared to their other needs.”

The ArrayRx website points out that individuals can use the digital ArrayRx Discount Card instead of insurance or Medicare if their insurance does not cover a medication. People can also use it when the digital ArrayRx Discount Card provides a better price than their insurance or Medicare plan. Additionally, ArrayRx Discount Card purchases will not count toward a deductible or out-of-pocket maximum, the ArrayRx website notes.

Photo byArrayRx

The state House and Senate approved legislation in 2023 enabling Connecticut to launch ArrayRx. The legislation, Public Act 23-171, contains a multitrack approach to tackle the ongoing issue of health care affordability. The Lamont administration developed it with input from a diverse group stakeholders, the Governor’s office said when the new law was signed by Gov. Lamont last June 27.

Governor Lamont said then, “The quality of Connecticut’s health care system is among the best in the nation, however rising costs make accessing health coverage a barrier for far too many people. Our administration is focused on addressing the policies and cost drivers that factor into these prices. This is a complex issue that needs to be tackled from multiple angles and we need the involvement of all parties – insurers, hospitals, doctors, employers, and consumers – in this effort to provide real solutions to lower health care costs.”