A large yellow bus dubbed the "Help is Here Express" will be in Council Bluffs today. Ed Belkin, vice president of Pharmaceutical Research and Manufactuers of America, says the bus tour is part of an effort to get people much-needed, but expensive, prescription medications.
Belkin says: "Everything is free. Everything is confidential and in a matter of minutes, we’re able to tell you if you preliminarily qualify to get help for your prescription medicines for free or nearly free." It’s part of what he calls the Partnership for Prescription Assistance. Belkin says they have access to more than 475 patient assistance programs and more than 180 programs offered by pharmaceutical companies.
Belkin says, "This is a one-stop clearinghouse. It permits anybody who is uninsured or underinsured to see if they can get their prescription medicines for free or nearly free. Fact is, most of the people we see are young and middle-aged." Belkin says the program has reached millions of people nationwide.
He says: "We’ve already helped more than three-point-nine million Americans over the past two years get access to their prescription medicines for free or nearly free. In Iowa, more than 37-thousand people have been connected to patient assistance programs under this umbrella called the Partnership for Prescription Assistance." The "Help is Here Express" will be at Alegent Health Mercy Hospital in Council Bluffs on Friday from 10 AM to 1 P.M. The bus will be touring Iowa for several weeks. Those who can’t make it to the bus can call 1-888-4PPA-NOW or visit www.pparx.org .