RxAssist.org -- Locating Prescription assistance programs

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RxAssist is a pharmaceutical access information center created by Volunteers in Health Care (VIH), a national resource center for safety net organizations. VIH operates out of the Brown University Center for Primary Care and Prevention, based at Memorial Hospital of Rhode Island, a Brown Medical School teaching and research facility located in Pawtucket, Rhode Island.

VIH was established in 1997 originally to assist and connect organizations across the country using volunteer clinicians to deliver health care to the uninsured. VIH quickly realized that pharmaceutical access is a key problem. Safety net organizations were struggling to meet their patients' medication needs; applying to the pharmaceutical companies' patient assistance programs was cumbersome and purchasing medication was expensive. As the years progressed, with each year bringing rising costs of medications, safety net health care providers were stuck with a dilemma: how could their patients receive the highest quality of care if they couldn't purchase medicine?

In 1999, with input from organizations across the country, VIH launched our website, RxAssist.org. RxAssist.org streamlines the application process for the pharmaceutical industry's patient assistance programs. Combined with our staff's extensive knowledge of pharmaceutical access issues and the creation of technical assistance tools, VIH and RxAssist are nationally recognized as expert resources for safety net organizations, policymakers, clinicians and the media.

Through RxAssist.org, Volunteers in Health Care offers:
• A comprehensive database of pharmaceutical company patient assistance programs. RxAssist was the first website to make application forms available online
• Extensive resources on using and understanding pharmaceutical company patient assistance programs
• Materials and information tailored to providers and consumers on medication access, including fact sheets, FAQs and "how to" guides
• Connections to programs and professionals across the country who are wrestling with issues of medication access, including a dynamic listserv
• Staff who are able to assist organizations starting or operating programs providing medication or pharmacy assistance
• Staff who are able to provide a national perspective on pharmaceutical access issues and strategies
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Volunteers in Health Care received support from the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation to update RxAssist. We continue to look for funding and sponsors for ongoing operations. If you would like to support our work through a grant, donation or sponsorship please contact Janet Walton, Deputy Program Director at janet_walton@mhri.org.