	VA Pharmacies Provide an Assortment of OTC Products

VA physicians prescribed OTC products for veterans more than 7 million times in fiscal year 1995, accounting for almost one-fifth of all prescriptions. They and the pharmacies have taken a number of different actions to limit the number of OTC products available through the pharmacies and the quantity of products veterans can receive. It had similar quantity restrictions for 15 other OTC medications. This system provides a more restricted number of OTC products than most VA facilities. OTC medications for its beneficiaries. VA recovered an estimated $7 million of these costs through veterans’ copayments. For individual OTC products, veterans’ medication copayments ranged between 4 percent to more than 100 percent of VA’s costs, depending on the type of OTC product and the quantities dispensed. Given that VA pharmacies filled prescriptions for such products over 2 million times last year, VA facilities may have the opportunity to achieve significant cost reductions if eligibility rules are more strictly enforced. VA facilities could also reduce costs by collecting medication copayments at the time of dispensing. Reduce OTC Product Handling Costs

VA pharmacies could significantly reduce their OTC product dispensing costs of $48 million by providing more economical quantities of medications and supplies. Some network directors plan to review their formularies to identify products that could be removed. Unlike VA, other health plans’ copayment requirements generally apply equally to all beneficiaries and for all covered products.
Why GAO Did This Study

GAO discussed the Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) policies concerning over-the-counter (OTC) medications, medical supplies, and dietary supplements.

What GAO Found

GAO noted that: (1) VA pharmacies provide many OTC medications; (2) VA pharmacies dispensed analgesics nearly 3 million times in 1995; (3) some VA pharmacies restrict certain veterans from receiving OTC products, as well as the quantity that they can receive; (4) one-third of VA facilities reduced the number of OTC medications available; (5) network directors are working to achieve a level of consistency and cost-containment for VA facilities within their network; (6) non-VA health plans make OTC products available to all beneficiaries on a uniform basis; (7) these plans' coverage of OTC products are more restrictive than most VA facilities coverage; (8) VA pharmacies dispensed more than 15 million OTC products last year, at an estimated cost of $165 million; (9) VA recovered 4 percent of its total dispensing costs through veterans' copayments; (10) veterans medication costs depended on the type of product and their eligibility status; and (11) VA can reduce the resources it devotes to OTC medications by adhering to statutory eligibility rules, dispensing OTC products more efficiently, collecting copayments, reducing the number of OTC products available to outpatients, and expanding copayment requirements.