Sammamish Bartells will stop filling Medicaid prescriptions

As of Feb. 1, the Bartell Drugs store at at 526 228th Ave. NE. in Sammamish will no longer fill DSHS/Medicaid prescriptions. Bartells blame their change in operation on the state of Washington's unwillingness to better compensate pharmacies who fill these prescriptions.

January 8, 2010 5:11 pm

As of Feb. 1, the Bartell Drugs store at at 526 228th Ave. NE. in Sammamish will no longer fill DSHS/Medicaid prescriptions.

Bartells blame their change in operation on the state of Washington’s unwillingness to better compensate pharmacies who fill these prescriptions.

According to a press release issues by Bartells, the industry pricing standard was reduced as a result of a court decision in Massachusetts.

“Unlike most other insurance providers including other states, the Washington State Department of Social and Health Services (DSHS) has made no effort to offset this significant reduction, resulting in sizeable reductions in payments to pharmacies,” said chairman and CEO George D. Bartell, in the press release.

Bartell said lengthy discussions between pharmacy industry leaders and DSHS, along with subsequent legal actions, have failed to resolve the issue thus far.

“We want to fill prescriptions. Bartell Drugs is here to serve our customers – to fill their prescriptions and meet their health care needs and we feel we do a good job offering outstanding patient care. Accordingly, this is a painful decision and one we do not take lightly. We want to be clear that the decision has nothing to do with our DSHS customers, but only with the State,” said Bartell. “We look forward to serving these customers any other way we can.”

Company officials are urging concerned customers to contact the Governor’s office at 360-902-4111, or local state legislators through the legislative hotline, 1-800-562-6000.

Bartells is discontinuing the Medicaid prescription program at 15 of 57 locations.

The other 14 stores affected are: Ballard, Roosevelt, University Village, Magnolia, Admiral Way, Bellevue Village, Bridle Trails and Houghton, Inglewood, Bella Bottega and Redmond Town Center, Sammamish Plateau, Edmonds, Mountlake Terrace, and Seattle Hill Road.

Bartell Drugs stores impacted in King County include Ballard, Roosevelt, University Village, Magnolia, Admiral Way (West Seattle), Bellevue Village, Bridle Trails and Houghton (both in Kirkland), Inglewood, Bella Bottega and Redmond Town Center (both in Redmond).

Snohomish county locations include Edmonds, Mountlake Terrace, and Seattle Hill Road.