11/19/2012 | Press release

Rite Aid Now Offers Diabetes Control Program in Cleveland to Help Fight Diabetes Crisis

distributed by noodls on 11/19/2012 15:56

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Rite Aid Now Offers Diabetes Control Program in Cleveland to Help Fight Diabetes Crisis

• Community-based Diabetes Control Program, available at 25 Cleveland Rite Aid pharmacies, will help enrolled patients learn to better manage their diabetes

Cleveland - (Nov. 16, 2012) - Rite Aid pharmacists are now participating in the Diabetes Control Program (DCP), giving many Clevelanders with diabetes a new and convenient way to manage their condition. The DCP is part of UnitedHealth Group's Diabetes Prevention and Control Alliance (DPCA), an innovative, community-based initiative aimed at fighting the epidemic of type 2 diabetes and prediabetes.

The DCP is now available at no additional cost to Cleveland-area residents enrolled in UnitedHealthcare employer-sponsored health plans. DPCA services also are available to other health insurers looking for a cost-effective method to help manage the symptoms - and costs - of diabetes.

The DCP is based on curriculum that has been clinically proven to help control type 2 diabetes and is now available at 25 Rite Aid pharmacies in Cleveland. In 2010, nearly 890,000 people 18 and older in Ohio (more than 10 percent of this age group) are estimated to have been diagnosed with diabetes. Also, about 266,000 people 18 years and older in Ohio are believed to have diabetes and not know it. The total for both diagnosed and undiagnosed diabetes is estimated at more than 1.1 million Ohioans1.

Rite Aid will connect people who have diabetes and who are enrolled in the DCP with Rite Aid pharmacists trained in diabetes care and medication therapy management, offering private, one-on-one consultations that provide education and support. Pharmacists will also consult regularly with enrolled patients to evaluate their success adhering to prescribed diabetes regimens and to review the patient's test results for blood pressure, blood glucose and cholesterol. Proper diabetes management has been proven to help reduce the risk of developing complications from diabetes, such as heart disease, nerve disease, blindness and limb amputations.

DPCA Service Available at No Additional Out-of-Pocket Cost to Enrolled Patients
Services offered by the Diabetes Prevention and Control Alliance may be contracted by any health insurer or plan sponsor. Currently, DPCA services are available at no additional out-of-pocket cost to participants enrolled in employer-provided health insurance plans through UnitedHealthcare and Medica in select markets. Cleveland-area plan participants who are eligible for the Diabetes Control Program are being contacted with information on how to enroll.

"Rite Aid's relationship with the Diabetes Prevention and Control Alliance is an important step to show our patients with diabetes that they aren't alone when it comes to managing their diabetes," said Robert I. Thompson, Rite Aid executive vice president of pharmacy. "Thanks to this innovative collaboration, Cleveland patients enrolled in the Diabetes Control Program can now receive one-on-one counseling with a Rite Aid pharmacist specifically trained in diabetes care and medication therapy management - all at no additional out-of-pocket cost."

"Rite Aid is a longstanding partner in the Diabetes Prevention and Control Alliance. By broadening its reach in the Cleveland area, Rite Aid is helping more people who must deal with diabetes every day learn how to take control of the disease, make healthy lifestyle changes and improve their health," said Deneen Vojta, M.D., senior vice president, UnitedHealth Group and chief clinical officer of the Diabetes Prevention and Control Alliance.

UnitedHealth Group created the Diabetes Prevention and Control Alliance to help address the growing epidemic of prediabetes and type 2 diabetes, which threatens to affect more than half of all Americans by 2020 at an annual cost of $500 billion if current trends continue, according to a report from the UnitedHealth Center for Health Reform & Modernization.

Diabetes Control Program: Reducing Dangerous, Costly Diabetes Complications
The DCP provides people with diabetes access to health care providers including specially trained pharmacists who provide personalized coaching and counseling in the convenient setting of a local pharmacy, and help patients improve adherence to their physicians' treatment plans. The goal is for patients to improve blood glucose control - every percentage-point drop in HbA1c levels, a commonly used blood glucose marker, reduces by 40 percent the risk of developing complications from diabetes, which include heart disease, nerve disease, blindness and limb amputations.

Diabetes Prevention Program: Addressing Obesity to Prevent Diabetes
In addition to the DCP, the Alliance also includes the Diabetes Prevention Program (DPP), an innovative lifestyle change program conducted in a group setting through the Y. The program helps people with prediabetes and who are at high risk for developing type 2 diabetes prevent or delay the disease through healthy eating, increased physical activity and other lifestyle changes.

1 2010 Ohio Behavioral Risk Factor Surveillance System

About Rite Aid
Rite Aid Corporation (NYSE: RAD) is one of the nation's leading drugstore chains with more than 4,600 stores in 31 states and the District of Columbia and fiscal 2012 annual revenues of $26.1 billion. Information about Rite Aid, including corporate background and press releases, is available through the company's website at www.riteaid.com.

About UnitedHealth Group
UnitedHealth Group (NYSE: UNH) is a diversified health and well-being company dedicated to helping people live healthier lives and making health care work better. With headquarters in Minnetonka, Minn., UnitedHealth Group offers a broad spectrum of products and services through two distinct platforms: UnitedHealthcare, which provides health care coverage and benefits services; and Optum, which provides information and technology-enabled health services. Through its businesses, UnitedHealth Group serves more than 75 million people worldwide.www.unitedhealthgroup.com.

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