Grifols Expands its PatientCare Program to Address Insurance Lapses in the Primary Immune Deficiency Community
As part of its ongoing commitment to the Primary Immune Deficiency community, Grifols offers its IVIG therapies at no cost to those who have a lapse in insurance or are in need of temporary assistance
LOS ANGELES, Feb. 3, 2011 /PRNewswire/ -- Grifols, Inc. today announced that it has expanded the company's PatientCare Program to offer immune globulins (IVIG) to the Primary Immune Deficiency community (PID). The program will provide Flebogamma® 5% DIF (Immune Globulin Intravenous (Human)) or Flebogamma® 10% DIF (Immune Globulin Intravenous (Human)) at no cost to patients with PID when insurance coverage is not available. The PatientCare Program consists of Grifols Assurance for Patients (GAP), which provides therapy for users of Grifols' products during a lapse in insurance coverage, and Grifols Patient Assistance (GPA), which provides therapy for individuals in need of temporary assistance.
The Grifols PatientCare Program has been available to the hemophilia community since 2006, where it has helped many patients who might otherwise be forced to delay treatment and suffer adverse health consequences. "Grifols is pleased to be able to broaden the PatientCare Program to the PID community, which like the Hemophilia community also faces problems in obtaining and maintaining adequate health insurance," said Gregory Rich, CEO, Grifols Inc. "The PatientCare Program demonstrates our ever growing commitment to helping those in need," said Mr. Rich.
Patients with PID require IVIG therapy on a regular basis in order to support their immune system. "In the event of a lapse in insurance coverage, it is very important to assure continued access to IVIG to the people who depend on this lifesaving medicine," said Marcia Boyle, President and Founder of the Immune Deficiency Foundation, the national patient organization for persons with primary immunodeficiency diseases.
Unlike other programs, the Grifols PatientCare Program does not require collecting coupons or counting doses. To take advantage of the program, a few simple forms must be completed and sent to a Grifols PatientCare representative for verification. The GAP program is open to anyone diagnosed with PID who has used a Grifols' product for the three months prior to lapse in coverage. The Patient Assistance program is open to anyone diagnosed with PID without insurance who is in need of temporary assistance regardless of whether they have previously used a Grifols therapy.
Applicants of the GPA program must meet financial eligibility requirements and both programs require certain insurance ineligibility. The GAP and GPA programs are not emergency programs and if a lapse in insurance coverage is anticipated, the eligibility forms should be completed ahead of time. Grifols also operates an Emergency Supply System for physicians seeking to obtain IVIG to treat a specific patient under emergency circumstances. Access to Grifols' Emergency Supply System does not require the requesting physician to be a current customer of Grifols – there are no prerequisites to the program other than an emergent need for treatment of a specific patient. For additional information about the Emergency Supply System please call (888) GRIFOLS.
Additional information about the PatientCare Program as well as enrollment and application forms and can be found on the web at: www.grifolspatientcare.com.
About Grifols
Grifols SA (Grifols) is a global healthcare company founded in 1940 in Barcelona, Spain. Today Grifols' products and services are provided in more than 90 countries around the world. Grifols specializes in the production of plasma therapies to treat a variety of life-threatening diseases and conditions. Grifols operates 80 plasma donor centers throughout the US and has manufacturing facilities located in Barcelona, Spain and Los Angeles, California. For more information about Grifols, please visit www.grifols.com.
SOURCE Grifols, Inc.
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